The Baltimore Ravens once more made the Miami Dolphins hella mad on Sunday, beating them 56-19 and never lifting the proverbial pedal from the medal even with the game decided late in the fourth quarter.
The Flock Nation got to enjoy another masterclass put together by the Ravens against, who else, the Miami Dolphins of all NFL franchises. Baltimore entered the third quarter already up 28-13, quickly added another touchdown to make it 35-13, and by the time the game reached the final frame the score was 35-19 in favor of the hosts.
The 56 points are the most Ravens have scored at M&T Bank Stadium.
โ Jamison Hensley (@jamisonhensley) December 31, 2023
It's the second-most in franchise history. Ravens scored 59 points in 2019 -- also against the Dolphins.
Then, magic (and joyful disrespect) happened. Lamar Jackson completed a touchdown pass to fullback Patrick Ricard to make it 42-19. With four minutes left, veteran rusher Melvin Gordon III scored another touchdown to put a 49-19 on the scoreboard. And making things even more hurtful for Miami, Tyler Huntley entered the game in relief of Jackson, and his lone completion ended in a 19-yard touchdown pass to reserve tight end Charlie Kolar.
It wasn't as gaudy as the 59-point outing the Ravens put together in 2019 against the Fins away from Baltimore...
Eh why not, hereโs Lamar Jackson throwing 5 TDs back in 2019 vs the Dolphins #RavensFlock pic.twitter.com/NkGxcjr1AG
โ ๐๐๐๐๐ฆฆยฎ (@NewEraZach) December 30, 2023
...but it was enough to see the Ravens score 56 points, an all-time high in franchise history in games played at M&T Bank Stadium per Jamison Hensley of ESPN. Yes, again against the Dolphins, the same team to which the Ravens already inflicted the biggest scoring outing they have ever completed when they dumped 59 points four years ago.
That extraordinary 2019 game saw Lamar Jackson make his debut as a full-time starter for the Ravens following a 2018 rookie season in which he took over mid-season. He tossed five touchdowns then, and once more on Sunday to make Dolphins fans even crazier on New Year's Eve.
Do I need to mention Jackson went on to unanimously win the Most Valuable Player award that year?
Fast forward to 2023, and both the Ravens and Jackson are putting on an encore. The team has won the AFC and the North division. Jackson is about to win his second MVP (perhaps not unanimously, but you can have it all, folks), and the Dolphins were once again ridiculed by Baltimore.
Unless they cross paths in the AFC title game, assuming Miami beats Buffalo next weekend and wins their division earning a top-4 seed in the AFC, both franchises might not meet again until the next regular season or later (still unknown). Perhaps that's the best the Dolphins can hope for knowing what's been going on between these two...