ExtremeRavens Posted yesterday at 05:16 AM Posted yesterday at 05:16 AM Lamar Jackson hadn’t played in four weeks. Over that stretch, the Ravens’ talented tight end room, almost always a fixture in the offense over Jackson’s career, seemed to disappear, too. That changed in Thursday’s 28-6 win over the Miami Dolphins, when Jackson returned and so, too, did contributions from Mark Andrews, Isaiah Likely and Charlie Kolar to give the Ravens their second straight victory to move to 3-5 as they chase down a steep comeback in the division race. Each of the Ravens’ first three touchdowns came from Jackson and to a tight end, two to Andrews and the third to Kolar. It’s the first time Andrews, whose career has seen all the peaks and valleys one can, scored a touchdown in a winning effort since Week 18 of last season after being perhaps the most maligned Raven over the past 12 months. And it was a reminder of Jackson’s ability to lead a balanced offense that can trash opposing defenses in seemingly unlimited ways when healthy. “I feel like when Mark scored the first two touchdowns, I was like, ‘Yeah, this is probably going to be one of our games,” Likely said. “We just kept going.” Jackson focused on Baltimore’s tight ends early and often in his return from a hamstring injury that held him out for three games. “They do it all — block, catch the ball, run sometimes,” the quarterback said. Jackson found Andrews open in the back of the end zone for the game’s first touchdown four plays after the Ravens’ defense recovered a fumble deep in Dolphins territory. Jackson hit Likely for a 35-yard gain down the right sideline to spark the next possession, and two plays later connected with Andrews again on a crossing route for a 20-yard score. After a trio of three-and-outs, Kolar capped the 11-play drive that opened the second half with his second touchdown in as many weeks to put the Ravens ahead, 21-6. “I guess I did that much. It was a pretty awesome scheme, I was pretty open,” Kolar quipped. “[Offensive coordinator Todd] Monken did a great job. Baltimore tight ends finished Thursday’s win with a combined seven catches for 105 yards and three touchdowns. Only Zay Flowers had more receptions than any of the top tight ends. It’s Andrews’ second two-touchdown game of the season, but his first highly productive game of the year in a victory. The 30-year-old never got going with Jackson on the field and struggled even more to connect with the team’s backup signal callers. It surely wasn’t the start Andrews, on the heels of last year’s playoff disaster in Buffalo, envisioned to help erase those lingering memories. And that performance, which overshadowed a bounce-back 2024 for Andrews, came after an injury-derailed 2023 campaign that prompted offseason ankle surgery and a frustrating recovery. Ravens tight end Charlie Kolar, right, celebrates after scoring a touchdown in Thursday's win over the Dolphins. (Rebecca Blackwell/AP) Andrews finished with fewer than 30 yards and no scores in five of seven games before Thursday. Likely had just 26 receiving yards on the season, stunted by an injured reserve stint that held him out until Week 4. Kolar was kept off the stat sheet entirely in four games. “It’s just a stress relief, being able to run with the ball in your hands and celebrate,” Likely said, acknowledging his contributions Thursday will help as he recovers from his late start to the season. In Thursday’s win, Likely and Kolar set season highs in receiving yards and Andrews posted his 12th career multi-touchdown game in a result that showed how the trio can best complement each other. All three have largely never been in such lockstep as they were Thursday. But they haven’t had Jackson throwing to them in a long time, either. “To see those guys come alive — and you knew they were there, it’s just a matter of getting them the ball,” coach John Harbaugh said. “We want to be able to spread it around and go to everybody. I think that’s what we want to be.” Have a news tip? Contact Taylor Lyons at tlyons@baltsun.com, 410-332-6200 and x.com/TaylorJLyons. View the full article Quote
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