What a game! The Miami Dolphins, led by the arm of Tua Tagovailoa, came back from a 21-point deficit over the Lamar Jackson and the Ravens to win 42-38 and improve to 2-0.
If you’re a huge fan of the old NFL when defense ruled the day, this game was definitely not for you. Lamar Jackson and Tua Tagovailoa combined for 787 passing yards and 9 passing TDs (with Lamar Jackson adding another 119 rushing yards and a rushing TD) in largest offensive outburst in a game in the NFL season thus far.
This truly was a fantastic game to watch…but not early on. In fact, this game was a blowout for the entirety of that first half in favor of Baltimore.
The Ravens came out flying (get it, Ravens and flying? Okay, I’ll stop now.) as Devan Duvernay, the Ravens kickoff return, took the ball 103 yards to the house for the first touchdown of the day.
What a way to start the game, am I right, Miami?
Well, it got even worse for the Fins as Lamar Jackson exploded on their defense, throwing for 210 yards and 3 touchdowns in just the first half ALONE, giving the Ravens a 28-7 lead to take into halftime. Lamar Jackson gets a lot of criticism for his ‘lack of arm talent’, but this game shows that those criticisms are just dumb.
The former MVP ended up throwing for 313 yards, his 3 first half TDs, a rushing TD, and rushed for 119 yards against a very sturdy Miami defense that held the Patriots to just 7 points last week. Lamar really is one of the most dangerous QBs in this league as he can not only rush for 100+ yards every single game, but he can also tear defense apart with his arm.
I don’t know what the Ravens are thinking by not already renewing Jackson’s contract. Just pay the man what he wants as he’s obviously worth it.
Also, I would be wrong to not point out the unbelievable games by Ravens TE Mark Andrews (9 REC, 104 yards, 1 TD) and WR Rashod Bateman (4 REC, 108 yards, 1 TD). These two ripped apart Miami’s defensive backfield as they provide their QB with two reliable, open targets. It’s too bad their great games were overshadowed by Miami’s “Dynamic Duo” at the wide receiver.
Anyway, for all of the praise I’m showering on Lamar Jackson, Tua Tagovailoa deserves that much and more. He simply BALLED OUT.
Overcoming the two bad interceptions form the first half, Tua led the Dolphins on a 21-point comeback by throwing for 460 yards and 6 TDs (with four of those coming in the 4th Quarter), which equaled a Dolphins all-time TD record in a game set by Bob Greise and Dan Marino.
That’s some good company to be in if you’re a QB.
This Miami offense is LEGIT as not only did Tua have one of the greatest games of his career, but also his star WRs Jaylen Waddle and Tyreek Hill both 150+ and 2 TD receiving yard games.
With Tyreek Hill catching 11 balls for 190 yards and Jaylen Waddle also catching 11 passes for 171 yards and 2 TDs, the Baltimore defense simply had no answer for the utter onslaught Miami head coach Mike Mcdaniels released upon them.
To be honest, I didn’t think that Tua was going to be able to work in this high-powered, pass-attack happy offense as I thought his arm strength would let him down. Obviously (and thankfully), I was wrong as Tua hit Hill for two deep TD passes, with one going for 48 yards and the other for 60 yards, proving that the former Alabama QB does have the talent to work in Mike McDaniel’s offensive scheme.
However, don’t think that Lamar Jackson and the Ravens were out of this game just because they gave up 21 unanswered points in the 4th quarter. With under 5 minutes left in the 4th, Jackson led the Ravens offense down the field and into the Miami half.
After missing on three straight passes, the Ravens brought out Justin Tucker to put the Ravens back up, giving them a 38-35 lead with under 2:30 left in the game.
Could Tua pull off a miracle and complete the largest comeback in Miami Dolphins history? Well, of course he could as he drove the ball 75 yards and connected with Jaylen Waddle for a TD with just 14 seconds left to win the game!
Whew, just writing about this game makes me tired, so I can’t image how these players felt. Both of these teams have a great chance of making the playoffs this season, but I think the Dolphins have just proven that they are true contenders for the Super Bowl.
This offense is one of the most explosive ones in the league as it has the ability to outscore anyone, which makes it super dangerous come playoff time.
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