Lamar Jackson and the Baltimore Ravens clinched a divisional title and the top seed in the AFC. There is no mathematical way to know if the standout quarterback also took home the Most Valuable Player award, but his fans made their point.
Constantly serenaded with chants, Jackson threw for 321 yards and five touchdowns as the Ravens shredded the Miami Dolphins 56-19 on Sunday. Baltimore won its first AFC North title since 2019, when Jackson was named MVP.
Jackson Had A Perfect Night
The stat sheet agreed. Jackson completed 18 of 21 passes without an interception. He finished with a perfect passer rating of 158.3.
Jackson missed the end of Baltimore's past two seasons due to injuries. Now, the Ravens can voluntarily rest him next week if they wish, although Harbaugh was noncommittal on that.
Baltimore, with a 13-3 record, has won six straight games, and the Ravens overcame a grueling December streak that included games against the Los Angeles Rams, Jacksonville Jaguars, San Francisco 49ers and now the Dolphins.
Harbaugh expressed his amazement at the performance, noting that he is not sure he has ever witnessed such an impressive performance in one game or over an entire season to date.
He emphasized that his team will enjoy a break in the first round before starting the playoffs and acknowledged that, despite the current achievements, they have a lot of work ahead of them, although he highlighted the maturity of his team.
In the opposite scenario, Miami is en route to the postseason with a solid 11-5 record. However, the outcome of the showdown against the Buffalo Bills next weekend will decide who will lead the AFC East.
In addition, the Dolphins are hit with another potential major injury: linebacker Bradley Chubb was forced to leave the field on a stretcher with 3:05 remaining, further aggravating his team's situation by suffering a knee injury.
In terms of in-game performance, Jackson stood out by recording more touchdown passes than incomplete passes.
This remarkable accomplishment was also achieved by Miami's Tua Tagovailoa in a resounding 70-20 victory over the Denver Broncos during Week 3.
In the past, Jackson had already achieved a perfect passer rating against Miami in 2019. This positioned Jackson on par with Tom Brady, who achieved the record against the Detroit Lions.
Both are the only quarterbacks with two perfect rates against the same team, with a minimum of 20 attempts.
🚨🚨FINAL🚨🚨🚨#FinsUp 19-56 #RavensFlock.
With this win, the Baltimore Ravens are North Division champions 👑 and the top seed in the American Conference 1️⃣#NFL #AFC pic.twitter.com/OOjjsieqBcm
- Ravens Flock Mexico (@RavensMX_) December 31, 2023
Minute-by-Minute Favor Baltimore
The clash between the Ravens and Dolphins was highlighted by pitting Miami's top-ranked offense against Baltimore's top-ranked defense. The game took a favorable turn for the Dolphins as they scored on their first series on an 8-yard pass from Tagovailoa to Cedrick Wilson Jr.
Although Miami came close to another touchdown on their second series, a Tyreek Hill fumble in the end zone led them to settle for a field goal.
However, the Ravens took the lead in a big way in the second quarter, with Gus Edwards capping an 89-yard drive with a 1-yard touchdown carry.
After another Miami field goal, Jackson responded immediately by finding Zay Flowers for a spectacular 75-yard touchdown, cementing the 21-13 lead.
Not long after, the Ravens struck again with an impressive sequence: a Roquan Smith interception followed by a 35-yard touchdown run by Isaiah Likely on fourth and seven.
The second half began with an outstanding kickoff return by Justice Hill, setting the stage for Jackson's 7-yard touchdown pass to Likely, extending the lead to 35-13.
Although last season the Dolphins came back from a similar score, this time they found themselves behind 35-14 with less than 13 minutes remaining.
Although they managed to score early in the fourth period on a 1-yard pass from Tagovailoa to De'Von Achane, it was the Ravens who closed out the game in commanding fashion.
They quickly advanced down the field, scoring on Jackson's 4-yard pass to Patrick Ricard to make it 42-19.
Melvin Gordon III contributed a 7-yard touchdown carry, and a Miami fumble resulted in another touchdown.
Tyler Huntley capped the scoring with a 19-yard touchdown pass to Charlie Kolar on third-and-goal from the 19-yard line.
In terms of notable statistics, the Ravens maintained their streak by rushing for at least 100 yards in 32 consecutive games and recording at least one catch per game in 37 games.
Jackson reached 800 yards on the ground on the season, the first quarterback in NFL history to do so three times.
The win was the second-highest scoring output in Ravens franchise history, second only to their 59-10 blowout win at Miami during 2019. In addition, Tyreek Hill surpassed 10,000 yards receiving for his career.
