Miami Dolphins look to repeat magic against formidable Ravens
By Brian Miller
The Miami Dolphins have not had much success against the Ravens and today will mark the first trip back to Baltimore since 2017.
Last season, the Dolphins shocked many across the NFL by beating the Ravens in primetime. It was a catalyst to another five wins in a row that brought Miami out of the basement and into the playoff picture.
This year the playoffs are a long way off but the game is important nonetheless. The winner of this game will hold an early season advantage in the tie-breaking scenarios that could come into play in 15 weeks.
The Ravens are a good football team but they have yet to become great. They have a good offensive line but their WR unit is not as good as other teams Miami will face. Their running back group is good but not elite. Their quarterback, however, is close to being elite and some would say he is.
Defensively, the Ravens are strong up front but they are banged up in the secondary and that could be an opportunity for Miami to exploit the group downfield. Last week, the Ravens’ defense surrendered 309 passing yards to Joe Flacco. He finished the game with a touchdown and an interception.
On the ground, the Jets managed just 83 yards and in total, could only generate 9 points on the day.
Miami will have to obviously be better. Last week they struggled at times offensively to move the ball against a good but not great defense. Defensively, Miami faced an offensive line that isn’t very good and a quarterback that many believe is overrated. That isn’t the case with the Ravens.
Miami will be tested today and they need to be. They have big games coming up and the Ravens are a team they should be able to compete with. Next week they have the Bills and then a short week to Thursday to take on the Bengals.
Today, Miami doesn’t have to be flawless to beat the Ravens but they need to be pretty close. It will rest on the game planning of the coaches and the execution by the players. Miami won’t get away with missed tackles and broken coverages today any more than they will errant throws by Tua Tagovailoa.