Dolphins meet Ravens in ‘heavyweight fight’ that could decide road to Super Bowl
It was an early candidate for game of the year last season and what many thought was a glimpse of two teams that could meet later when the stakes were much higher.
The Dolphins mounted one of the largest comebacks in franchise history in Week 2 of the 2022 season, erasing a 21-point deficit in the fourth quarter to defeat the Ravens in Baltimore, 42-38.
But a playoff rematch never materialized as injuries to both starting quarterbacks derailed their teams’ seasons, which ended in the wild-card round.
Fifteen months after the thrilling victory, the Dolphins are back in Baltimore with an opportunity Sunday for AFC supremacy.
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A Miami win would clinch the AFC East title for the first time since 2008 and assure the team of a top-two seed in the postseason for the first time since 1992. It would also give the 11-4 Dolphins, who are currently the No. 2 seed, the inside track for the conference’s top spot, only needing a win against Buffalo in the regular-season finale or a Ravens loss to Pittsburgh to secure a first-round bye and home-field advantage.
A loss, though, would clinch the No. 1 seed for the conference-leading Ravens (12-3) and potentially put Miami in a must-win situation in Week 18 to secure the division.
“It doesn’t matter what’s at stake, we want to win,” said quarterback Tua Tagovailoa, who threw for a career-high 469 yards and six touchdowns the last time he faced the Ravens. “If we know we win this next game, we win the following game, we continue to win, we’ll get to where we want to go to as a team.”
The memories from last year’s game are vivid for a Dolphins team that was still in the nascent days of the Mike McDaniel era.
There was Baltimore’s 103-yard opening kickoff return that immediately put Miami in a 7-0 hole. A pair of interceptions off Tagovailoa that contributed to a 28-7 halftime deficit.
Wide receiver Tyreek Hill leaving the game in the second half to get IVs for cramps on a balmy afternoon — only to return and get behind the Ravens’ defense for two deep scores. And then Tagovailoa’s game-winning pass to wide receiver Jaylen Waddle with 14 seconds remaining.
Since arriving as head coach, McDaniel has made “adversity is an opportunity” a sort of slogan for the team. This was the first time it played out.
“I remember going into halftime being like, ‘What the heck happened?’” fullback Alec Ingold told the Miami Herald, “because we had so many physical and great plays, but the ball didn’t seem to be bouncing our way ... And it was a time with a new head coach, with a lot of new guys on the team where you’re still trying to figure out who you are.”
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There was still uncertainty for a new Dolphins regime, but that comeback instilled belief in McDaniel’s messaging.
So much has changed for both teams since then, though.
A Dolphins defense that allowed Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson to rack up 437 total yards and four touchdowns in the last meeting implemented a new scheme under first-year defensive coordinator Vic Fangio. Miami’s defense is now one of the best in the league, allowing 4.8 yards per play, which is in the NFL’s top five.
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Baltimore ushered in a more modern passing offense for Jackson, the front-runner for the league’s Most Valuable Player award. He has blossomed in the new system with a career high in passing yards.
But there’s also been an evolution in existing schemes. In the second year of McDaniel’s offense, the Dolphins are not only the highest-scoring team (30.9 points per game) in the NFL but a more balanced unit. Miami remains a big-play offense but has shown the ability to get tough yards on the ground in key moments.
Meanwhile, the Ravens’ defense has become more cohesive and now leads the league in scoring defense (16.9 points per game).
Key injuries loom over both teams. Waddle has been ruled out because of a high ankle sprain, and the availability of do-it-all Ravens safety Kyle Hamilton is uncertain because of a knee injury.
Beating the Ravens at M&T Bank Stadium would not only make Miami the No. 1 seed entering Week 18 but would further bust the narrative that the Dolphins only beat lesser teams.
They took a big step in that direction by defeating the Dallas Cowboys 22-20 on Christmas Eve. Now, they find themselves 31/2-point underdogs to a Ravens squad that went on the road Monday night and convincingly beat the San Francisco 49ers, who were previously viewed as the top team in the NFL.
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The Dolphins’ 70-point explosion against the Denver Broncos in Week 3 led to a bevy of comparisons to some of the most high-flying offenses in NFL history. But Miami’s win against Dallas on a last-second field goal showed that there’s also substance to a team that’s been recognized more for its speed.
“What [the Dolphins] did to Denver early in the season will linger forever,” CBS analyst Charles Davis, who will provide color commentary during the game, told the Miami Herald. “But you forget that there has to be a grit. There has to be a time when people have to dig it out and go get it. And they did that against Dallas. And I really thought that last drive kind of tied that all together.
“And maybe now all the rest of us, me included, as we’re watching this Dolphins team will realize, OK, it’s not just flash and dash, and they’re gonna be OK.”
Miami’s next hurdle could leave few, if any, questions about their viability as championship contenders. While the win against the Cowboys was significant, the team has struggled on the road. Miami is 19-3 in its last 22 games at Hard Rock Stadium, but 4-3 away from home this season, with losses to the Bills, Philadelphia Eagles and Kansas City Chiefs, all likely playoff teams.
Overcoming a Ravens defense that has been synonymous with toughness — not just this season but for much of the franchise’s history — could prove to the greater public that a team built on speed also has the grit Davis referenced.
“We play a brand of football that people don’t want to play,” Ravens inside linebacker Patrick Queen said after Baltimore beat San Francisco. “Everybody wants to be out here [being] cute, playing basketball on grass and stuff, and we [are not] with all that. You can do all that stuff; we’re just going to hit you in the mouth every play, honestly.”
McDaniel and Dolphins players took exception to the idea that they are not a physical team — and a win could erase that stigma.
“I think both can be true. You can have speed and you can be physical as well,” Tagovailoa said. “I think that’s what people misunderstand when it comes to our team. They see, yeah, OK, guys are fast. Guys are flying around the field. But look at our runs. Look at everyone that has man blocks, that has crack blocks. Guys are willing to take on [defensive ends] that are way smaller. ... We don’t have the biggest wide receiver crew, but guys get in there, they do what they need to do.”
However the matchup is perceived, safety DeShon Eliott, a former Raven, described it succinctly.
“This is going to be a heavyweight fight,” he said.
This story was originally published December 29, 2023 at 3:22 PM.
