Baltimore vs. Jacksonville
Ravens Struggle Early but Get Needed Win over Jacksonville to Remain Ahead in Wild Card Race
It wasn’t the performance head coach John Harbaugh would’ve liked to have seen, but at this point in the season, it all comes down to the adage from late Raiders owner Al Davis: just win, baby.
And win the Ravens (9-5) did, 20-12 over the Jacksonville Jaguars, tied for the NFL’s worst record at 2-12, at M&T Bank Stadium on Sunday.
The offense was strikingly dull in a win that saw Baltimore score just one touchdown on offense and trailed 12-10 at halftime, and even always-reliable Justin Tucker missed two field goals. But the defense and other parts of the special teams unit came through to secure the win.
Sometimes, that’s how it goes in sports: you need teammates to pick up those who are struggling, and that’s what Baltimore did today.
“We had too many [mistakes] to overcome to play the kind of football we wanted to play,” Harbaugh said after the game. “[Jacksonville is] a lot better than their record indicates… It’s a great victory. It’s December football. You take every win you can get, and we’re proud of the victory.”
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The Ravens’ defense sacked Jags quarterback Blake Bortles eight times in holding the Jaguars without a touchdown all day, and Darian Stewart’s blocked punt kept the Ravens in it in the first half with the offense sputtering. Stewart got a hand on the punt, sending it into the backfield, where Kamar Aiken scooped it up and ran in 11 yards for the first points of the game.
“My eyes got so big,” Stewart said with a laugh. “But I was able to get there fast and just make the play, and Kamar [Aiken] was able to pick it up and go with it. So, it was definitely a big play in the game."
“When I saw [Stewart] pop open, I was just like, 'He's going to get this one,'” Aiken recalled. “And then he got it, and I'm thinking, 'This can't be–this is a layup.' It was just going back to the basics; scoop and score.”
To the Jaguars’ credit, they executed an onside kick and a fake punt to extend drives and lead to field goals, giving them a chance to win on a day where their defense (especially against the run) played as well as the vaunted Baltimore “D.”
“Their mindset coming in was to stop the run,” Ravens running back Justin Forsett, who was held to 48 yards on 16 carries, said in the locker room after the game. “They were a physical bunch. They've got a great front seven and they did a good job today. Give credit where credit's due. They did a good job.”
Joe Flacco was 20-for-30 for 221 yards and a touchdown and also had a key run for a first-down in the third quarter that led to the touchdown that put the Ravens on top when Flacco found Owen Davis for a 3-yard touchdown score to make it 17-12 Baltimore. In a game where the Smiths (Torrey and Steve) were relatively quiet, Daniels had 62 receiving yards and a score, and Marlon Brown led the team with 66 yards gained.
“You can't take any team for granted. You have to respect all,” Forsett added. “They did a great job coming in today. We have to do better. And I think it'll be a good experience for us to go back to the drawing board and hopefully keep winning games, and get better as an offense.”
“Our pass rush has been phenomenal. It has been phenomenal all year, and it has to be,” Harbaugh said. “That's football. When you get pressure on the quarterback – it's a passing league – that's the key.”
Among the eight sacks, Elvis Dumervil had one to tie his career-high in a season with 17. Terrell Suggs had 2.5, and Timmy Jernigan—playing in place of the suspended Haloti Ngata—had a pair as well.
GAME RECAP
The game opened with the Jaguars getting the ball, and their first series ended with the blocked punt that saw Baltimore take an early 7-0 lead. On the ensuing possession, the Jags moved the ball a bit before Josh Scobee connected on a 53-yard field goal to make it 7-3 Ravens.
The offense didn’t take the field until the 9:39 mark of the first quarter, and after a quick first down, Baltimore had to punt. The Jags trimmed the lead to 7-6 after Scobee hit a 45-yarder on the next possession, so Jacksonville was having some success moving the ball early.
After a fumble by Kyle Juszczyk gave the Jaguars a short field, they again settled for three points after Scobee hit from 53 yards out. After the onside kick recovery, Jacksonville lined up for yet another field goal, but Scobee missed from 42 yards away.
The Ravens then finally started to move the ball, but they were stopped just three yards away from the end zone, so Tucker booted a 22-yard field goal to make it 10-9 Ravens. A Scobee 45-yarder before halftime made it 12-10 at halftime.
Baltimore got back into striking distance midway through the third when Flacco found Daniels for a 29-yard completion to the 3-yard line, and on the very next play, the two connected again for the go-ahead score, 17-12 in favor of Baltimore.
The Ravens defense took over from there, shutting out Jacksonville in the second half, and after a Tucker field goal extended the lead to 20-12 late in the fourth quarter, Bortles was intercepted by Jeromy Mills on 4th and 19 with 27 seconds to go to seal the win.
UP NEXT
With two games remaining, Baltimore is tied with Pittsburgh, and both are a half-game behind Cincinnati for the AFC North lead. The Ravens and Steelers currently hold the two wild card spots in the AFC. Baltimore plays at 7-7 Houston next week, while Pittsburgh hosts Kansas City and the Bengals welcome in Denver on Monday night to close out Week 16.