The Baltimore Ravens (4-4) are back in the AFC playoff race! Against totally desolate Miami Dolphins (4-3) a solid performance of the offense is enough – which, however, lost quarterback Joe Flacco after a brutal hit before the half time. A Dolphins-Offense without teeth once again in all areas could not capitalize on it, instead it set a historical shut-out bankruptcy: 0:40 was the score in the end from Miami’s point of view!
As expected, the Dolphins had to manage without starting quarterback Jay Cutler, who broke several ribs against the jets last week – Cutler himself will probably make his comeback next week and after this game he won’t have to worry about his regular place. It is doubtful whether the offense with him had looked different. The only thing is clear: she was a debacle with Moore.
Moore (25/44,176 YDS, 2 INT) threw two Pick Sixes late in the game, all of which eliminated any remaining doubts. But above all, Miami was physically incapable of handling the Ravens physically and once again had huge problems on the offensive line. Suddenly, this was also true for their own defensive front, when Baltimore led to Maclin’s touchdown and a field goal of 10-0 at the beginning of the second quarter, the Dolphins had just produced two first downs.
But the story of the game is the injury to Flacco. Flacco (10/15,101 YDS, TD) was hit extremely hard on the head by Kiko Alonso in the first half while he gave up after a run and slipped to the ground, leaving the game immediately with a concussion.
It wasn’t the only unsightly appearance of a Dolphins defender: In the final phase, frustration was evidently still there, so Ndamukong Suh Flaccos back-up Ryan Mallett (3/7,20 YDS, TD) grabbed hold of Ndamukong Suh Flaccos back-up Ryan Mallett (3/7,20 YDS, TD) and deliberately caught sight of William Hayes Baltimore’s Austin Howard during a row. The game had already been decided long ago, and in addition to the two Pick Sixes in the final quarter, the Ravens had additional luck: Receiver Chris Moore grabbed a mallet-fumble for a touchdown in the final zone.
Baltimore Ravens (4-4) – Miami Dolphins (4-3)40:0 (7:0,13:0,0:0,20:0) BOXSCORE
This game never seemed to be really close, Miami’s offense was far too harmless. Baltimore’s second touchdown two minutes before the end of the second quarter was already more than the preliminary decision – and also psychologically important. Flacco had just visibly injured and went into the cabin, three plays later Mallett Ben Watson from two yards found his way to the touchdown. The Dolphins went into the half-time break with a 20:0.
The Ravens went into the game with one of the more vulnerable run defenses, Miami has been trying for weeks to get his run game rolling and seemed to have a real chance here. But the Dolphins had to bury these hopes quickly: Jay Ajayi’s first run was promptly a 21-yarder – followed by two yards in twelve more attempts. Baltimore completely controlled the Line of Scrimmage defensively and determined the rhythm of the game almost continuously.
In a game in which no team managed to break the 180-pass yard mark and dominated Baltimore’s defence, Collins was responsible for the offensive highlights. Moved the offense consistently and showed its explosiveness, all against one of the best run defenses in the league so far. Two catches for 30 yards confirmed the good impression, almost half of his rushing yards came after first contact with the opponent. He also recorded four Forced Missed Tackles.
When Moore came in against the jets, the fans in Miami cheered. In the past few weeks, the spectators in South Beach had already called for Moore on several occasions and in fact his more aggressive approach to the offense seemed to do well. Against Baltimore, there was nothing to be seen at all: Desaströse four (!) yards per pass, the two Pick Sixes as final coffin nails – even from clean pocket, Moore was disastrous, overlooked free receivers or missed them. It was another complete debacle for Miami’s offense. Alonso should also be mentioned here for his hit against Flacco.