Ravens Insider: Ravens’ Lamar Jackson returns to light up Dolphins again in 28-6 victory

ExtremeRavens · 2025-10-31T03:16:24Z

MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. — Lamar Jackson played for the first time in 33 days Thursday night at Hard Rock Stadium in what was also his first game back in South Florida in four years. Performing just 30 minutes south of where he grew up, it didn’t take long before he looked like his old self, either.

As the final seconds of the opening quarter of an eventual blowout victory ticked away, he danced and dodged and pulled away from the grasp of the Miami Dolphins’ defense and found an open Isaiah Likely on a short pass to convert a critical first down. Two plays later, he dropped back and, with a blitzing defender bearing down on him, connected with his other tight end and career favorite target, Mark Andrews, who was wide-open for a 20-yard touchdown strike after two defenders collided.

It was the second of two scores for Andrews and the second time this season that the eight-year veteran had a two-touchdown game.

Those scores, along with a defense that forced another momentum-changing turnover deep in its opponent’s end for a second straight week and a Dolphins team that couldn’t get out of its own way, helped propel Baltimore to an easy 28-6 victory. The win was the second in a row for the Ravens (3-5), who continue to inch closer to the AFC North lead and back from a season on the brink.

Most importantly, Jackson showed no ill effects from the hamstring injury that had kept him sidelined since the third quarter of a Week 4 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs.

The last time these two teams met in South Florida, in November 2021, Miami blitzed Jackson into oblivion, sacked him four times, intercepted him once and held him to just one touchdown in a 22-10 upset. But that was a distant memory Thursday night.

This time, the two-time NFL Most Valuable Player, who twice before had a perfect passer rating against Miami in 2019 and 2023, was closer to those outings. He torched the Dolphins’ decimated and beleaguered secondary, completing 18 of 23 passes for 204 yards and four touchdowns and running for another 14 yards on five carries.

The victory moves Baltimore within 1 1/2 games of the division-leading Steelers, who have lost two straight and will play the Indianapolis Colts, who have the NFL’s best record at 7-1, on Sunday afternoon in Pittsburgh.

The Ravens also have five division games over their final eight, furthering the opportunity to chase down another AFC North title. Thursday night was just their latest step toward that endeavor, and Jackson wasn’t the only standout.

After Miami (2-7) took a 3-0 lead on a 49-yard field goal by Riley Patterson on the game’s opening series and Baltimore went three-and-out on its first series, safety Alohi Gilman stripped wide receiver Tahj Washington at Miami’s 18-yard line and returned it to the 7. It was the second straight week with a momentum-shifting turnover after an interception by Nate Wiggins deep in the Chicago Bears’ end that led to a backbreaking touchdown Sunday.

The latest turnover set up a fourth-and-goal from the 2-yard line, and this time the Ravens’ short-yardage foibles faded away as Jackson rolled out to the right on fourth down and threw a strike to Andrews at the 8:30 mark of the second quarter.

The mistake-prone Dolphins, meanwhile, kept their trend of self-inflicted wounds going.

After De’Von Achane (14 carries, 67 yards) raced unbothered through Baltimore’s defense to help Miami reach Baltimore’s 12 on its second possession of the game, a false start on fourth-and-1 was followed by a 35-yard field goal attempt by Patterson that sailed wide right. One series later, a questionable tripping penalty on rookie back Ollie Gordon II wiped out a 36-yard bomb to a wide-open Jaylen Waddle, who was knocked out at the 7-yard line; instead, Miami ended up punting.

That was just the beginning of the Dolphins’ problems.

Trailing 14-6 and facing fourth-and-2 from the Ravens’ 13-yard line with 1:08 remaining in the first half, Tua Tagovailoa (25 of 40 passing for 261 yards, one interception) airmailed Achane on a pass into the end zone. Then, one possession later and on the final play of the second quarter, Tagovailoa didn’t even get off a Hail Mary attempt from his own 49, sacked on the play by Mike Green and David Ojabo.

And after holding Baltimore to a 14-6 lead on just 23 plays and four first downs and running back Derrick Henry to 3.4 yards per carry over the first 30 minutes, the dam broke.

Jackson led the Ravens on an 11-play, 68-yard drive to open the second half, capping it with a 3-yard toss to another wide-open tight end, Charlie Kolar. One series later, it took Baltimore just four plays to cover 60 yards with Jackson connecting with Zay Flowers for a 39-yard gain along the way and then finding a wide-open Rashod Bateman in the back of the end zone for a 9-yard score. Henry finished with 119 yards on 19 carries.

At one point, Jackson had completed nine straight passes in the third quarter before the streak ended with an incompletion on a pass intended for DeAndre Hopkins on a third-and-7 in the final minute of the quarter.

By then, though, the result was not in doubt. With just under seven minutes remaining, rookie safety Malaki Starks put a bow on it with his first career interception.

Jackson and the Ravens were winners once more.

This article will be updated. Have a news tip? Contact Brian Wacker at bwacker@baltsun.com, 410-332-6200 and x.com/brianwacker1.

Ravens wide receiver Zay Flowers reacts after a 39-yard catch in the second half. (Lynne Sladky/AP)

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Ravens wide receiver Zay Flowers reacts after a 39-yard catch in the second half. (Lynne Sladky/AP)

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Ravens Insider: Ravens’ Lamar Jackson returns to light up Dolphins again in 28-6 victory

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