15-year Phiniversary: 2007 Miami Dolphins stun Ravens in OT
Throughout Miami Dolphins history, there are plenty of seasons worth forgetting. Perhaps none were as forgettable as 2007.
That year, Miami finished as the worst team in football with a record of 1-15. The lone victory that season, however, came in a thrilling fashion on this day 15 years ago.
After erasing an early 10-point deficit, Cleo Lemon’s 64-yard touchdown pass to Greg Camarillo got the Dolphins in the win column against the Baltimore Ravens, 22-16.
The Dolphins were a dismal 0-13 as they got set to take on Baltimore on Dec. 16, 2007. Early on, it looked like it would be more of the same.
Miami trailed 13-3 at halftime but scored the first 13 points of the second half. After Samkon Gado scored on a 7-yard touchdown run in the third quarter, kicker Jay Feely knocked through a 22-yard field goal to tie the game early in the fourth. His 22-yard make with 1:56 to go gave the Dolphins a 16-13 lead.
Miami needed just a stop for victory, but as was the case all season, nothing came easy. Feely’s ensuing kickoff went out of bounds, giving Baltimore the ball at its own 40-yard-line. With Troy Smith in at quarterback, the Ravens marched to the Miami half-yard-line.
Following the completion from Smith to Devard Darling on 3rd-and-goal with 12 seconds left, Baltimore head coach Brian Billick had a fourth-down decision to make. He sent Matt Stover out for the tying 18-yard field goal to force overtime.
Early on in overtime, it looked as though that would be the right decision. With the contest knotted 16-16, University of Miami alum Willis McGahee and Musa Smith ran the Ravens into field goal range. Miami tightened defensively, but the 44-yard field goal attempt was well within Stover’s range.
To that point in his career, Stover was 5-for-5 in overtime. With a chance to win the game, his kick sailed to the left.
Following the miss, the Ravens were in a position to get the ball back as the Dolphins faced 3rd-and-8 from their own 36-yard-line. On the game’s final play, Lemon threaded the needle, firing one over the middle. His pass sailed past a breaking Ed Reed and into the arms of a streaking Camarillo near midfield. Camarillo did the rest as he outran defenders to the end zone for the winning touchdown.
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Pro Football Reference
Lemon passed for a career-high 315 yards in the win. Camarillo recorded his first career 100-yard receiving game, finishing with 109 yards. Defensively for the Dolphins, Michael Lehan had the game’s only interception while Jason Taylor recorded two sacks.
From the end of 2006 to the beginning of 2008, Miami went a dismal 1-20 over a 21-game stretch. The lone victory was an overtime thriller that came on this day 15 years ago.