Baltimore vs. Miami
Ravens Get Much-Needed Comeback Win at Miami to Stay in Solid Wild Card Playoff Position
With both teams coming in Sunday’s game at Sun Life Stadium in Miami tied at 7-5, the Baltimore Ravens and Miami Dolphins both needed a win to keep pace in the AFC Wild Card race, and things looked a bit grim for the visitors after Miami raced out to a 10-0 lead in the opening quarter.
But the Ravens turned things around and outscored the Dolphins 28-3 the rest of the way for a 28-13 win to improve to 8-5 on the season, which keeps pace with Pittsburgh and San Diego, as all three teams are fighting for the two Wild Card spots at 8-5 with three games left in the season. Miami (7-6) fell a game behind all three teams in the loss.
The Ravens cut the deficit to 10-7 at halftime and were spurred on by a third-quarter gamble by head coach John Harbaugh, as he elected to go for it on fourth and 1 in Ravens territory, and after converting, Baltimore finished the drive with a touchdown and didn’t look back.
“We stuck together. We didn't panic. We did stay with our game plan, all three phases,” Harbaugh said after the game. “When you've got an offensive line that we've got, you got a chance to do something like [going for it on fourth down]. And that was big. In your own territory, it's hard to make that call but not with our offensive line. I'm proud of those guys for that.”
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Once the Ravens got going, their offense was in synch. It took them until two minutes into the second quarter to get a first down, but they ended the day with 26 first downs and 447 yards.
Joe Flacco, who was 25-of-33 for 269 yards, three overall touchdowns (two passing and one rushing), and an interception, improved to 5-0 in his career against the Dolphins with four of those wins coming on the road. After the game, Flacco talked about the fourth-down call being a key that helped turn the game in their favor.
“We had had a good couple drives and we knew we had to be aggressive to win this football game and to come down here in this place against a good football team that was playing pretty well at the time,” Flacco explained. “The confidence that he had in us to stay on the field at that point was huge. It ended up proving to be really big because we went down and scored a touchdown."
Justin Forsett ran for 71 yards and a touchdown, and Steve Smith was the leading receiver with 70 yards and a touchdown. Kamar Aiken also had a touchdown catch and 65 receiving yards on the day.
For an offense that struggled at times earlier in the year, they have stepped it up after the bye, averaging 32 points in three games and posting a 2-1 record.
“Our players keep working really hard every single day just to get better. Just to get a little bit better every day,” Harbaugh said. “One percent better than the day before. Really. We talk about that. But our guys take it seriously and we got to keep doing it. We got to do it this week again.”
On the other side of the ball, Miami did the opposite of Baltimore as far as offensive production. After gaining nearly 100 yards and scoring 10 points in the first quarter, the Dolphins were outgained 425-161 in the final 45 minutes of game action.
Elvis Dumervil sacked Ryan Tannehill 3.5 times, giving him 16 on the season, which is a new franchise record. Terrell Suggs also had 1.5 sacks, and C.J. Mosley had one to total six on the day.
“I can't take all of the credit for myself,” Dumervil said in the locker room. “I've got selfless guys that I play with: Courtney Upshaw–I'll give him a special shout out who helps me stay fresh—Pernell McPhee in the middle rushing his butt off, obviously, playing alongside Terrell Suggs, it really helps.”
GAME RECAP
As mentioned, the Ravens started slow, going three-and-out and punting away to the Dolphins after the opening possession. Miami responded with a 46-yard field goal by Caleb Sturgis to open the scoring at 3-0. After another three-and-out that actually lost five yards, Miami had another successful drive, ending with a 3-yard touchdown pass from Ryan Tannehill to Brian Hartline to extend the lead to 10-0.
It remained that way until the final moments of the second quarter. Baltimore took over at their own 3-yard line with 3:08 remaining in the half, and the moved efficiently to the 1-yard line of Miami with 8 seconds remaining. With one shot for a score and no timeouts remaining, Flacco connected with Steve Smith to get the Ravens on the board, trailing 10-7 at the half.
The Dolphins could not do much with the opening possession of the second half, punting away to the Ravens. This was the drive that saw Baltimore facing a fourth-and-1 from their own 34-yard line, and Flacco converted with a quarterback sneak. The Ravens were rewarded for their aggressiveness, as the drive resulted in seven points when Flacco connected with Kamar Aiken from 13 yards out to put the Ravens on top, 14-10.
Sturgis opened the fourth quarter with a field goal to cut the lead to 14-13, but Baltimore immediately responded, going 80 yards in 4:30 and punctuating the drive with Justin Forsett touchdown, extending the lead to 21-13.
The Dolphins went three-and-out, and the Ravens kept their foot on the gas. After six-straight running plays, Flacco took it in himself from the 1-yard line, reaching the final score of 28-13.
UP NEXT
Baltimore catches a break with Jacksonville next on the schedule, as the two teams meet in Week 15 at M&T Bank Stadium. The Jaguars are 2-11 on the season after a 27-13 home loss to Houston today.