The second week of the 2022 NFL season produced a remarkable mixture of comebacks and surprises. One of the most intriguing matchups would have been played in Baltimore as the home side took on the Miami Dolphins.
Both teams have picked up solid wins in Week 1 after the Ravens dominated the pitch against the NY Jets, while the guests got the edge over the NE Patriots.
Ravens' fantastic start
The home side enjoyed a better start to the game on Sunday afternoon as they scored a touchdown in just 13 seconds. The second quarter turned out to be quite positive for the Ravens, as well, despite not being the first team to score in the part.
They eventually built up a 21-point lead heading into the third quarter which ended up with both rosters scoring one touchdown and an extra point. It all seemed to be working well for the hosts on Sunday as they were looking to get their fifth consecutive win over the Dolphins at M&T Bank Stadium.
An unfortunate turn of events
Despite their consistency until the fourth quarter, the Ravens lost their lead in less than 10 minutes. Tyreek Hill rose to the occasion and scored his first touchdown for the Dolphins which was quickly followed by another one to tie the score.
The Ravens found a way to come back on top with Justin Tucker who scored a field goal with less than 150 seconds to go. Unfortunately, their defense was not able to withstand the up-and-coming Dolphins who fought back with a fourth touchdown for the quarter. Jaylen Waddle connected on a pass by Tua Tagovailoa for the lead and eventually the win.
Lack of experience
One of the rookies who had some positive numbers was Tyler Linderbaum. He ended the game with a PFF grade of 66.1, the leader among Baltimore's offensive line.
The Iowa-born star will have a lot of pressure on his shoulders, as he is likely to want a place among the Hawkeye state's all-time greats. Which won't be easy, as you can see for the names in this list: https://clutchbuzz.clutchbet.com/nfl/best-nfl-players-from-iowa.
On the other end, the rookies in the Ravens' defensive line made several mistakes during the clutch moments of the game. This led to increased pressure among them which ended up tragically for them.
However, this will surely be a lesson to learn not only for them but also for the coaching staff. This can also be classified as a coaching disaster since John Harbaugh could have taken timeouts at a more appropriate time during the match.
Coaching mistake
John Harbaugh has led his team to their second Super Bowl in 2012, when they defeated the San Francisco 49ers in the final game. Unlike what happened on Sunday against the Dolphins, they managed to keep their 15-point advantage all the way through the end of the match.
Harbaugh has been a head coach of the Ravens since 2008, and he is certainly one of the most experienced people in the NFL right now. Despite his success in Baltimore, he could have achieved even more, if only his team dealt with the pressure.
It's certainly not their first time they blew a decent lead in a game as this is considered among the biggest flaws in Harbaugh's career. He typically helps his team perform on a high level during the regular season, but eventually loses the much-needed pace when it's most needed during the playoffs.
Against the Dolphins, he could have released the pressure from his defensive backs who seemed to have been quite disorganized at a certain point in the fourth quarter. There was visibly a huge miscommunication between Marcus Peters and Kyle Hamilton, who suffered a 48-yarder reception from Tyreek Hill.
All in all, both the Ravens and the Dolphins remain top contenders for the playoffs. However, it's quite unlikely that one of them will go all the way to the Super Bowl, but it's still too early to make such a confident call.