The final minutes of a preseason game aren’t usually all that memorable to those who aren’t taking part in it, but Monday night’s game between the Ravens and Commanders was a bit different.
Baltimore held a 28-26 lead in the final minutes of what would have been their 25th straight preseason and forced the Commanders into trying to convert on fourth-and-11 to keep their hopes alive. Jake Fromm’s pass was incomplete, but defensive pass interference extended the drive and the Commanders moved for a game-winning Joey Slye field goal with 10 seconds left to play. They would seal the win with an interception on the Ravens’ next offensive play.
Commanders guard Sam Cosmi mocked the Ravens’ winning streak as “stupid” before the game, but the team’s celebration of Slye’s kick made it clear they cared about coming out on top of the game. Wide receiver Jahan Dotson confirmed as much when he spoke to reporters.
“I was sitting in bed watching ESPN all day, and all you could hear about is this streak, the streak,” Dotson said, via John Keim of ESPN.com. “So I feel like we just had the biggest preseason W in history. It was definitely pretty cool knowing what they had on the line that we could end that.”
The biggest preseason win in history doesn’t amount to much in the bigger scheme of things, but it did serve as a good warmup for the final minutes of the games that will count starting next month.
