Baltimore Ravens lose another close game to Miami Dolphins

The Baltimore Ravens suffered another close defeat at the hands of the Miami Dolphins, losing 15-13, following a missed 55-yard field goal by Justin Tucker.

It is always close and never easy for the Baltimore Ravens and their fans, and the loss to the Miami Dolphins is another example of that.

The Ravens had a late opportunity to take a lead on a Justin Tucker field goal, but the former Pro Bowler missed a 55-yard try as Baltimore lost their eighth game of the season by a score of 15-13.

The loss will overshadow a terrific day for rookie running back Javorius Allen. The former USC standout finished with 63 yards on 17 carries and was very effective in the passing game catching 12 passes for 107 yards, including a 41-yard touchdown for the Ravens only touchdown of the game.

Matt Schaub dealt with a lot of adversity for the Ravens, playing up-and-down throughout the game. He threw two interceptions, one for another touchdown, but led the offense into position to win the game despite the turnovers and questionable officiating.

The Ravens looked to score a touchdown on their second drive, but the zebras cost Baltimore the points on a phantom offensive pass interference penalty. Daniel Brown looked to have scored a touchdown on his first NFL reception, but was called for penalty after his defender slipped to the ground. To make matters worse, two plays later, there was a clear tug on Allen’s facemask, but no flag was thrown. A drive that should have resulted in a 7-0 lead for Baltimore ended with a punt. That is the type of season it has been for the NFL officials.

The next drive for the Ravens was a 15-play, 80 yard drive that ended on the Miami 2-yard-line. John Harbaugh had a fourth-and-1 and decided to go for it instead of kicking the field goal. Schaub kept the ball on a sneak, but came up short and the Dolphins took over on downs.

After 28 minutes without scoring in the first half, the final two minutes was the Ravens season in a nutshell. Everything went against them real quick and a game that the Ravens seemed to be in control of started slipping away.

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The Dolphins defense came up with a key interception following the two-minute warning. Schaub had his pass tipped at the line and the ball floated into the waiting hands of Reshad Jones for the turnover. The offense capitalized one play later with a 38-yard touchdown from Tannehill to rookie wide receiver DeVante Parker. Tannehill put the ball in a spot that only his receiver could get it, and Parker made a fantastic grab to come down with the ball for the score. It was huge for the Dolphins offense that was struggling up until that point.

The day continued to go south for Baltimore as Schaub had another pass tipped at the line and Dolphins defensive end Derrick Shelby took the deflection to the house for another Schaub pick-six to give Miami a 13-0 lead. If that was not enough disappointment for you, the extra point was one of the craziest sequences ever seen in football.

The Dolphins missed the PAT, but the Ravens were called for lining up offsides, giving Miami another shot at the kick. That kick was then blocked by Baltimore and returned by Terrence Brooks for a two-point score, but once again, the Ravens were flagged for offsides. Miami said enough of trying to kick for the point and converted the two-point conversion on a Jay Ajayi one-yard run to take a 15-0 lead.

Baltimore responded with a much-needed drive to put some points on the board. Schaub got the offense to the 20-yard-line on a couple solid gains by Chris Givens, but they would settle for a Justin Tucker 38-yard field goal to trail, 15-3, at halftime.

The offense came out firing to start the second half as Schaub finished 3-for-3 for 65 yards on the opening drive, capped off on a 41-yard catch and run by Allen to cut the Dolphins lead to 15-10. It was exactly the start the Ravens needed as Allen made several tacklers miss in space on his way for the touchdown.

Allen continued to impress in the second half and was the key cog on a Ravens drive that ended with another Tucker field goal to cut the lead to 15-13. Allen had a run of 16 yards that put Baltimore into field goal range and caught two passes on the drive before it stalled.

The Ravens defense made the play of the game by forcing a fumble late in the game. Lamar Miller was able to bust through the defense, but Kendrick Lewis knocked the ball loose and Courtney Upshaw came up with the recover to give Baltimore possession at the Dolphins 39-yard-line.

The turnover did not work out for the Ravens as Tucker missed another 50-yard field goal, this time from 55 yards out for his fifth consecutive miss over 50 yards. Miami took over possession, running the clock out to win the game.

Matt Schaub was injured on the Ravens final drive and Jimmy Clausen was warming up on the sidelines. He seemed to injure his left shoulder prior to Tucker’s miss and was seen wincing in pain as the training staff attended to him. He did return following the injury, and we should have some updates on his condition shortly.

The loss is a tough one to swallow as the defense limited Tannehill to just 86 yards passing, and 38 of those yards came on the touchdown to Parker. The Dolphins did have some success on the ground, but Baltimore made plays when they needed them.

Next: Ravens vs. Dolphins Score Prediction

Next up for the Ravens is a home game against a Seattle Seahawks team that has scored 30 or more points in three of their last four games. Russell Wilson has been phenomenal the past two weeks, recording nine touchdowns and is showing the progression that many were questioning him about earlier in the season.

Suddenly, a 10-loss season is looking possible for the Ravens.

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