OAKLAND, Calif. _ The Ravens offense and its much-maligned quarterback answered the call Sunday, playing mistake-free football and wearing the Oakland Raiders down up front.
Joe Flacco ended his streak of 10 games without an interception and the Ravens used a balanced attack to get a huge road win against the Oakland Raiders, 30-17, at the Oakland Coliseum.
With the Pittsburgh Steelers' home loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars, the Ravens (3-2) are back in a first-place tie in the AFC North. They broke their two-game losing streak and now have two road wins this season.
Flacco completed 19 of 26 passes for 222 yards. The Ravens rushed for 143 yards and two touchdowns, and the Ravens' defense scored on a 47-yard fumble return by cornerback Jimmy Smith.
The Ravens had 241 yards of offense in the first half, didn't turn the ball over and scored on three of their four possessions. However, they got conservative on their first two drives of the third quarter, going three-and-out and quickly punting the ball back to the Raiders.
They paid for it when Raiders quarterback EJ Manuel, starting in place of an injured Derek Carr, led a 12-play, 65-yard touchdown drive. Manuel's 10-yard scramble on third down set up a 3-yard touchdown by Marshawn Lynch, which cut the Ravens' once-18-point lead to 24-17.
The Ravens were finally able to sustain a drive in the second half as Flacco hit Breshad Perriman for a big 13-yard completion on third-and-3 and then he hit Mike Wallace for 27 yards on third-and-8.
Flacco couldn't punch the ball into the end zone, but the drive served its purpose as a 21-yard field goal by Justin Tucker made it a 27-17 game.
The Ravens have struggled early in games, getting shut out in the first half in back-to-back losses. However, less than five minutes into the game, they already led by two touchdowns. That came courtesy of both an offensive and defensive touchdown.
On the first play from scrimmage in the game, Flacco went deep and found Wallace down the near sideline for a 52-yard gain. The Ravens set up a first-and-goal thanks to two runs by Terrance West, the second of which he suffered a potentially significant calf injury that knocked him out for the rest of the game.
On second-and-2 from the 2, Flacco handed the ball to Vince Mayle on an end around and the reserve tight end dived and extended the ball over the goal line for his first career touchdown on his first career carry.
Three plays from scrimmage later, weak-side linebacker Patrick Onwuasor stripped tight end Jared Cook after a short completion from Manuel. Smith scooped up the ball and encountered little resistance in running it in for a 47-yard fumble return touchdown.
The Raiders, who were having success on the ground, got on the board with a 32-yard field goal by Giorgio Tavecchio. But the Ravens, as sharp on offense as they've been all year, answered the points by again reaching the end zone.
Buck Allen culminated a 15-play, 75-yard drive that absorbed 8:10 with a 1-yard touchdown run. The drive included two Flacco-to-Jeremy Maclin completions on third down, including a 6-yard conversion during which Flacco fell down, got to his feet and then shuffled the ball out before he was taken to the ground.
The Ravens' 21-3 lead didn't last long. On the ensuing possession, Manuel shrugged off a sack attempt by Za'Darius Smith and found Michael Crabtree behind the secondary for a 41-yard touchdown. Crabtree's fifth touchdown catch against the Ravens in three games as a Raider came when cornerback Brandon Carr got caught peeking in the backfield and let Crabtree get several steps on him.
The Ravens answered again as Flacco found Wallace, who had his way in the first half with cornerback Sean Smith, for a 54-yard gain. That set up a first-and-goal from the 8. An incomplete pass from Flacco to Benjamin Watson in the end zone forced the Ravens to settle for Tucker's 22-yard field goal.
The 24-10 score held going into halftime.
