Mike McDaniel explains the controversial call against the Ravens

The Miami Dolphins didn’t struggle much in the Week 9 loss to the Baltimore Ravens Thursday Night Football. The fans booed the Dolphins’ performance as the Ravens won the loss, 28-6.

Baltimore completely dominated Miami on Thursday. But the referees played a role in derailing the Dolphins’ second-quarter drive. Tua Tagovailoa scored Jailen Waddle for a 36-yard gain to the Baltimore 7-yard line. However, the big one the game was deleted by tripping about Ola Gordon II.

After the Dolphins loss, the head coach Mike McDaniel was asked to take it on the controversial flag. “It was a subjective call. New York was called to determine the objective part of the subjective call — whether there was contact … I saw a guy slip and he was called to (intentionally) trip somebody,” McDaniel said, per ESPN’s Marcel Louis-Jacques.

A controversial foul by Ollie Gordon wiped out the Dolphins’ scoring chance

Gordon appeared to slip while trying to block Ravens linebacker Mike Green on a deep Dolphins punt. But officials called the rookie a run for tripping, which carries a 15-yard penalty.

Instead of being lined up inside the Ravens’ 10-yard line with a chance to cut the lead to four, Miami was backed up at its own 42. The Dolphins would punt three times later.

The tripping penalty was the second of two missed opportunities for Miami early in the game. However, the first one was self-inflicted. An ugly sequence involving a penalty kick and a missed field goal denied the Dolphins points at the end of the first quarter.

While some luck and (seemingly) bad calling went against Miami early in Week 9, that doesn’t explain the team’s second-half shutout. The Dolphins had a field goal with just under eight minutes left in the second quarter. That was the last time Miami scored as the Ravens held off the Dolphins for the final 37 minutes of the game.

McDaniel addressed the fans while whistling team at Hard Rock Stadium. In what appeared to be a Rami Malek impression, the fourth-year coach acknowledged that fans like to win and the Dolphins haven’t given them much to cheer about. While ownership stood by him during a disappointing start, McDaniel’s seat must be getting warmer after Thursday’s lopsided loss.