Dolphins Stumble Against Ravens as Frustrated Fans React

MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. — The Miami Dolphins faced a challenging situation during their home game against the Baltimore Ravens on November 2, 2023, suffering a significant 28-6 defeat. Despite their home-field advantage at Hard Rock Stadium, the presence of a large contingent of Ravens fans impacted the atmosphere and the Dolphins’ performance early in the game.

The Dolphins encountered a setback on their third drive when right tackle Larry Borom was penalized for a false start on a critical fourth-and-1 play. The penalty followed a pre-snap movement by Ravens linebacker Kyle Van Noy, which appeared to disrupt the Dolphins’ cadence. Quarterback Tua Tagovailoa acknowledged the effect of the crowd noise on the team’s execution, stating, “With the Ravens fans, it maybe got a little muffled with my cadence and the crowd noise.”

The Dolphins’ struggles continued as kicker Riley Patterson missed a 35-yard field goal following the penalty, intensifying the frustration among players and fans alike. Head coach Mike McDaniel was visibly upset over the penalty, which he later attributed to “self-inflicted wounds” that the team had emphasized avoiding throughout the season. He remarked, “In critical fourth-and-1 where we are pretty fired up about the defensive look, it was what we were calling the play for and that’s flat out a controllable that our team knows that keeps you from winning.”

As the game progressed, the atmosphere at Hard Rock Stadium soured for Dolphins fans. Many left their seats late in the third quarter as the Ravens extended their lead to 22 points. Some remaining Dolphins supporters wore paper bags or popcorn buckets over their heads, a visual expression of their dissatisfaction with the team’s performance.

In addition to the penalty issues, the Dolphins turned the ball over three times, converted only 2-for-12 on third downs, and failed to score on any of their three red zone trips, including a fumble and an incomplete pass from the Ravens’ 13-yard line. “We’ve got to capitalize when we get down to the red zone,” linebacker Jordyn Brooks stated bluntly. “We just had too many turnovers today, and I feel like that really hurt us.”

Despite outgaining the Ravens in the first half, with 226 total yards to their 109, the Dolphins trailed 14-6 at halftime. McDaniel noted that it is “generally a bad omen” when a team does not capitalize on opportunities it should be winning. Tagovailoa echoed this sentiment, indicating that the offense struggled to find its rhythm, stating, “We couldn’t find our flow.”

As the Dolphins’ record fell to 2-7, marking their worst start since McDaniel took over in 2022, the team faces a significant challenge moving forward. With a 10-day break before facing the Buffalo Bills in Week 10, McDaniel expressed understanding of the fans’ frustrations. “Our expectation is that we have to do the work and do the right things for fans to enjoy the experience,” he said. “Unfortunately, we didn’t do that tonight, so we’ve got to get back to work to give them something to cheer about.”

The Dolphins will need to regroup and address the issues that plagued them against the Ravens if they hope to turn their season around and restore faith among their loyal supporters.