National Football League
Baltimore 19, Jacksonville 17
When: 1:00 PM ET, Sunday, September 25, 2016
Where: EverBank Field, Jacksonville, Florida
Temperature: 88°
Head Official: Gene Steratore
Attendance: 60127

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- Baltimore Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco did just enough to find a way to win Sunday and continue his team's best start to a season in seven years.

The Jacksonville Jaguars were left feeling like they let another winnable game slip through their fingers in an increasingly frustrating season.

Flacco led a late scoring drive to give the Ravens a 19-17 victory at EverBank Field in a wild back-and-forth game that saw each team have opportunities to escape with a win.

"For us, it's a fabulous victory," Baltimore coach John Harbaugh said. "I am very excited we won the football game. I feel like it was the hand of God. That's how I feel. I'm proud of our guys for their fight."

Both teams battled.

Baltimore defensive end Brent Urban blocked a 52-yard field goal attempt by Jacksonville kicker Jason Myers with 3:06 remaining to set up his team's decisive score.

Flacco, who earlier set a franchise record with 21 straight completions, then marched his team 22 yards on eight plays, including converting on fourth-and-2, to give his kicker a chance.

Justin Tucker was perfect from 54 yards with 1:07 remaining. He made all four his field goal tries from 43, 42, 37 and then 54.

Flacco finished the game 29 of 40 for 214 yards with no passing touchdowns and two interceptions. He did scramble for a 7-yard touchdown in the first quarter and was sacked twice.

"In the fourth quarter, there's either blowouts or there's nail-biters and that definitely was a nail-biter," said Ravens receiver Steve Smith, who appeared to get into a scuffle with Jaguars rookie cornerback Jalen Ramsey during the fourth quarter. "We make it interesting, and I think we make it more interesting than we really like."

A nail-biter for sure."

The fourth quarter of Sunday's game featured four interceptions and a muffed punt in addition to the field goal that was blocked by the Ravens.

It looked like it was going to add up to a victory -- finally -- for the Jaguars (0-3).

Reserve running back Denard Robinson recovered a muffed punt by Baltimore's Devin Hester to set Jacksonville up with field position at the Ravens' 39-yard line with 9:01 remaining and the Jaguars trailing 16-14.

Jacksonville failed to collect a first down but did take a 17-16 lead on a 49-yard field goal by Myers.

That's when the craziness really got going.

Flacco was intercepted on a pass that was deflected by a diving Ramsey and ended up in the arms of free safety Tashaun Gipson on the ensuing possession.

Then Bortles threw an interception to cornerback Tavon Young.

Flacco then threw another interception when his arm was hit by defensive end Dante Fowler and his fluttering pass landed in the hands of linebacker Paul Posluszny.

But the Jaguars couldn't cash in to increase their lead, allowed the late field goal and now face the daunting task of facing Indianapolis next week in London in a game that could possibly cost coach Gus Bradley his job if the team falls to 0-4.

Jacksonville has lost six games in a row dating back to last season.

"I wouldn't really want to play for someone else other than (Bradley), but I can't really control that," Fowler said. "It's not in my hands. All we have to do is just do our best to keep him here."

Jaguars quarterback Blake Bortles will need to be better against the Colts after he was unimpressive again Sunday. He finished 24 of 38 for 194 yards with two touchdowns and three interceptions. He was sacked four times.

One bright spot for Jacksonville is both touchdowns went to receiver Allen Robinson.

The team's top target had totaled just nine catches for 126 yards in games against Green Bay and San Diego to begin the season, but he looked more like the player who caught 80 passes for 1,400 yards and 14 touchdowns last season on Sunday.

Bortles found him for a 3-yard score during the second quarter. The pair hooked up for an 11-yard strike with Robinson in one-on-one coverage to cut Baltimore's lead to 16-14 in the third quarter.

Robinson's second touchdown grab was initially ruled incomplete before being overturned after a review.

"For me, it's just about making plays," Robinson said. "I feel like I haven't made enough plays for my team so far, so I was just trying to go out there and do it."

The loss was a much better showing for Jacksonville than last week's 38-14 loss to San Diego, when the team's defense was gashed.

Jacksonville limited Baltimore to 283 yards on offense but could only manage 216 itself in a game that never developed much of a rhythm.

"We came out and did everything we had to do but toward the end of the game I think things got a little out of hand," Gipson said. "A little sloppy and they were able to come out there and win the game."



NOTES: Jaguars RB Chris Ivory made his debut with the team after missing the first two games of the season with what the team has called a "general medical issue," but he did little to help a stagnant ground attack. Jacksonville entered the league 30th in rushing yards per game and totaled just 48 yards on 21 carries. Seventeen of those yards were on scrambles by Bortles. ... Jacksonville was playing without starting C Brandon Linder (sprained knee) and LT Kelvin Beachum (concussion). ... WR Rashad Greene returned a punt 42 yards in the second quarter to set up Jacksonville's first score. ... Flacco became the second quarterback (Aaron Rodgers) to rush for a touchdown against Jacksonville this season. ... C.J. Mosley intercepted Bortles in the first quarter on an impressive one-handed grab as he fell to the turf. ... Ravens tight end Dennis Pitta continued his strong season with six catches for 42 yards.
Top Game Performances
Rushing
Baltimore   Jacksonville
Terrance West Player Blake Bortles
10 Attempts 3
45 Yards 17
4.5 Avg Yards 5.7
0 Touchdowns 0
15 Long 9
Receiving
Baltimore   Jacksonville
Steve Smith Sr. Player Allen Robinson
8 Receptions 7
87 Yards 57
10.9 Avg Yards 8.1
0 Touchdowns 2
23 Long 14
Team Stats Summary
 
  Yards Scoring Defense
Team Tot Rus Pas TD FG INT Sck FF
Baltimore 283 84 199 1 4 3 4.0 0
Jacksonville 216 48 168 2 1 2 2.0 1
Upcoming Games
  • Jacksonville will play their next game at home against Indianapolis. The Jaguars have a W/L % of .000 after a win and .000 after a loss.
  • Baltimore will play their next game at home against Oakland. The Ravens have a W/L % of 1.000 after a win and .000 after a loss.