Just like in the season opener, the Raiders defense held up early. At the end of the first quarter, the Ravens led 3-0 despite only having one first down. They forced a punt on the first drive and gave up just one first down on the second drive, with Maxx Crosby sacking the drive to stop it for a field goal.
The Raiders’ offense got a little better early in the second quarter. Brock Bowers and Davante Adams caught a couple of balls and got the Raiders past the halfway line before they stalled. Daniel Carlson made a 53-yard field goal to tie the score at 3-3.
The Ravens responded with another drive within scoring range. The Raiders defense eventually stopped them, but not before they reached the 25-yard line and scored another field goal to take the lead again, 6-3.
A Gardner Minshew interception gave the Ravens another chance to score late in the second quarter, but their drive stalled again, and this time Justin Tucker’s 56-yard attempt to the left wing was unsuccessful, leaving the score at 6-3.
Minshew came out to lead the two-minute drill. A 24-yard pass interference penalty on Marlon Humphrey put the Raiders in field goal range inside the 30. They lined up on third-and-5 and Thayre Munford was beaten at the edge by Kyle Van Noy, allowing the nine-yard sack. Daniel Carlson made the 51-yard field goal to tie the score at 6-6 with 1:37 left in the second quarter.
This was enough time for the Ravens to advance deep into Raiders territory, but the Raiders defense eventually hardened in the red zone, forcing a field goal and sending the Ravens into halftime with a 9-6 lead.
Just like last week, Minshew was able to complete a high percentage of his passes, but the results left a lot to be desired. He completed 14 of 16 passes for 64 yards and one interception.
Right at the start of the third quarter, the Ravens ran through the Raiders. They got first downs on their first two plays with a run up the middle and a pass to a completely free Mark Andrews. Then Derrick Henry took the handoff for 29 yards down the left sideline, putting them in first and goal at the nine. Two plays later, Lamar Jackson found Zay Flowers for an easy touchdown over the middle, putting the Ravens ahead 16-6.
After a Raiders loss of possession, it looked like the Ravens could come right back and score another point. But everything changed when Jakorian Bennett intercepted a pass and Robert Spillane intercepted it. The Raiders took full advantage of the possession and scored a touchdown. The big play was a 27-yard pass to Brock Bowers to the one-yard line. Alexander Mattison got the ball from the one-yard line and converted it to make the final score 16-13.
That didn’t last long, however. The Ravens marched right back down the field, leaning on Derrick Henry, who ran for 38 yards and a touchdown, extending the Ravens’ lead back to ten points at 23-13.
True to the back-and-forth nature of this game, the Raiders’ offense got going as well. Gardner Minshew completed a 28-yard pass to Davante Adams, and then Davante made a brilliant sideline toe-tapping catch that knocked him out of bounds and gave him 30 yards, giving them the lead at the nine-yard line.
They would settle for a field goal to tie the game at 23-16.
The defense did its job and forced a three-and-out on the Ravens to give the offense another chance. And the offense didn’t waste that effort.
Minshew went airborne again and connected with Davante Adams on another long ball up the left sideline for 29 yards. An 11-yard pass to Brock Bowers gave them first and goal at the nine. A pass interference by Baltimore in the end zone gave the Raiders another first and goal at the one. And Minshew faked a run and threw the ball over the top to Adams for the game-winning touchdown.
The Raiders defense held the Ravens to a three-and-out AGAIN. And it included a huge nine-yard sack by Maxx Crosby, his second of the game.
After a short punt and a penalty, the Raiders started with the ball in Baltimore territory. Zamir White ran four times for 16 yards and Minshew completed an eight-yard pass to Jakobi Meyers to put them in field goal range and run out the clock. Daniel Carlson converted his field goal to give the Raiders a 26-23 lead.
The Ravens had 27 seconds to equalize, but they couldn’t.
In a game where they trailed by 9.5 points on the road, the Raiders took a 26-23 victory and improved their season record to 1-1.
