Strong Second Half Pushes Raiders Past Ravens in Week Two
For the first since 2015, the Baltimore Ravens will not have a win through the first two weeks of the season. The Las Vegas Raiders powered past the Ravens on Sunday in a back-and-forth game to bring their record to 1-1. After missing out on a quality win against the Chiefs in Week One, the Ravens were looking to even their record and grab a boost of momentum. Their home opener was spoiled by Gardner Minshew II and the well-oiled Raiders offense.
The first half was a defensive showdown. The Ravens won the coin toss and elected to receive in the second half. The first drive resulted in a punt from the Raiders and was highlighted by an Odafe Oweh strip sack. The Ravens immediately capitalized, driving down the field and getting three points on a 48-yard field goal by Justin Tucker. The next four drives all resulted in punts thanks to outstanding defensive play from Odafe Oweh and Maxx Crosby.
On the second drive of the second quarter, Minshew led the Raiders down the field, picking apart the Ravens’ defense with short passes before settling for a 53-yard field goal by Daniel Carlson. The Ravens responded immediately with their version of the passing game before settling for a 42-yard field goal by Tucker. The Ravens immediately got the ball back on an interception by Marlon Humphrey on the second play of the Raiders’ drive. The Ravens still struggled to move the ball into the red zone as Lamar Jackson struggled to find his receivers, and Derrick Henry continued to get stopped at the line of scrimmage and had a hard time fighting for positive yards. Tucker was set up for a 56-yard field goal but missed, keeping the game 6-3 in favor of the Ravens. The Raiders took advantage and scored their own 51-yard field goal, capitalizing on a 24-yard pass interference penalty on Marlon Humphrey. The Ravens charged downfield, finally putting together multiple passes and a successful run by Jackson to kick a 34-yard field goal to go into the half leading 9-6.
While the first half was a defensive showdown, the second half proved to be quite the opposite. The Ravens put together an outstanding offensive drive highlighted by a Derrick Henry 29-yard run. Jackson was able to find Zay Flowers in the end zone for an eight-yard passing touchdown. The Raiders then had their success with a 25-yard pass to Brock Bowers but ultimately came up short, and the Ravens forced a turnover on downs. It was the Raiders this time, however, that came back for blood as Robert Spillane intercepted Lamar Jackson off a pass that was tipped back by Marlon Humphrey. The Raiders were able to take advantage with another deep pass to Bowers and a one-yard rushing touchdown by Alexander Mattison to make it a close game, trailing 13-16.
The Ravens responded in the fourth quarter, immediately putting together a great offensive drive using all of their weapons. The drive featured big gains by Rashod Bateman and Isaiah Likely and big runs from Henry and Jackson. The drive ended with a three-yard rushing touchdown by Derrick Henry to give the Ravens the lead 23-13. On the Raiders' next drive, they finally broke out their weapon, Davante Adams. He had two huge downfield catches that resulted in Carlson kicking a 25-yard field goal. The next Ravens drive was unsuccessful, with penalties being self-inflicted, which caused a lot of damage, resulting in a punt. The Raiders were once again ready to capitalize, with Minshew completing huge passes to Adams and Bowers and a huge pass interference penalty by cornerback Brandon Stephens. Minshew was able to find Adams in the end zone for a one-yard passing touchdown to tie the game up. The Ravens had one last opportunity to pull out in front, but Maxx Crosby came up big with a nine-yard sack, eventually forcing them to punt. Zamir White and the Raiders were able to use two minutes of the clock to charge downfield and kick a field goal to grab the lead 26-23 while also forcing the Ravens to use the last of their timeouts. The Ravens had roughly 30 seconds to gain about 30 yards to get into field goal range, but unfortunately, they couldn’t do it. They were able to complete only one pass and, on the last play of the game, tried a last-ditch run effort from their own 41-yard line. The Raiders walked away 1-1 and will face the Carolina Panthers at home on Sunday, September 22 at 4:05 PM EST. The Ravens move to 0-2 for the first time since 2015 and head to Dallas to face the Cowboys at 4:25 PM EST, where they hope to get their first win of the season.
