The Miami Dolphins may have already clinched a playoff spot, but their 56-19 loss to the Baltimore Ravens on Sunday certainly didn’t make them look like a playoff team.
The Ravens (13-3) have clearly been on a roll lately, winning six in a row and 10 of their last 11. But to completely strangle a high-scoring AFC playoff team like they did with the Dolphins (11-3) 5 ) is was a little concerning if you’re a Miami fan, even though it was a loss to the best team in the NFL.The Dolphins were coming off an impressive win the week before, when they outlasted the Dallas Cowboys 22-20 to give them their first win over a team with a winning record. But when it came to facing the favorite to win MVP, Lamar Jackson of the Ravens, it seemed like it was too much for the Dolphins. Now coach Mike McDaniel and the Dolphins will have to battle the surging Buffalo Bills for the AFC East title next weekend. But before that happens, we have to blame the losers of Week 17. While Jackson and the Ravens matched the Dolphins’ first drive of the game and went touchdown after touchdown, Miami had to settle for a field goal on the second drive of the game thanks to a missed touchdown opportunity. The Dolphins were able to drive 65 yards in 6 plays, but as they entered the Ravens’ 10, a pass from Tua Tagovailoa was picked off by Tyreek Hill, which would have been a touchdown. The speedy receiver’s uncharacteristic mistake forced the Dolphins to settle for a field goal, with a lead of just three instead of seven. By the time Tagovailoa threw his second interception, the game was already out of reach as the Dolphins trailed 35-13. However, the Miami quarterback’s first interception came with less than three minutes left in the half, in which the Dolphins trailed just 21-13. Tagovailoa was knocked out by Roquan Smith at the Baltimore 32.Four plays later, the Ravens took advantage of the Dolphins turnover and turned it into eight points to get to 15 points. Although the Dolphins got the ball back before halftime, the Ravens forced them to punt, with Baltimore getting the ball back early in the half, which they then scored again to get within 22 points. In total, the Dolphins recorded three turnovers on the day, but here too, like Tagovailoa’s late interception, running back Mike White lost a fumble with just over four minutes remaining of the fourth quarter, which actually didn’t play a big role. The Dolphins were already ahead at 49:19. However, the fumble occurred at the Miami 25, which then turned into another Baltimore touchdown three plays later, extending the lead to 37. Although the turnovers obviously cost the powerful Baltimore offense Miami, it was their defense, particularly their secondary, that did them no favors on Sunday. The Ravens scored on eight of their 11 drives, all of which resulted in touchdowns and no field goals. But Lamar Jackson cheered them on all day and perhaps delivered one of the best matches of his entire career. Jackson scored more touchdowns than incompletions against the Dolphins, going 18 of 21 for 321 yards and five touchdowns, averaging 15.3 yards per pass and finishing with a perfect passer rating of 158.3.One of those completions came on a single play in the first quarter with a 75-yard touchdown pass to Zay Flowers that allowed Miami’s defensive backs to not only be out of coverage, but also miss two tackled while trying to score. the end zone.On the next drive, Jackson hit Isaiah Likely for a 35-yard touchdown, where missed tackles were once again a problem.
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