BALTIMORE, Oct. 28 (UPI) -- Randall Cunningham engineered a pair of fourth-quarter scoring drives Saturday and hit Qadry Ismail with a two-yard touchdown pass with 4:07 remaining that rallied the Baltimore Ravens to an 18-17 victory over the Jacksonville Jaguars.
Starting in place of Elvis Grbac, who missed the game with a rib injury suffered in last Sunday's loss at Cleveland, Cunningham led the Ravens (4-3) to just a pair of field goals in the first three quarters.
Jacksonville's Mark Brunell, meanwhile, hit running back Stacey Mack with an 11-yard touchdown pass on the first play of the fourth quarter that gave Jacksonville a 17-6 lead.
But the 38-year-old Cunningham was able to help the defending Super Bowl champions avoid their third straight loss as he orchestrated scoring drives of 71 and 56 yards over the final 9:48.
"I had a lot of anxiety today. I knew Elvis wasn't able to play and I just filled his shoes today, nothing more," Cunningham said. "I had a good time and just played football. This is the first time in my career I feel a different level of maturity. They (younger players) look up to me.
"I still feel the same energy as I had in Philadelphia in Minnesota."
"There is one thing about having been there before, he knows what to do," Ravens coach Brian Billick said. "Being a backup doesn't make a difference to me. Someone who knows how to get the job done is what counts."
It is the second straight season a backup quarterback has come in to perform well for the Ravens. Last season, Trent Dilfer replaced Tony Banks as the Ravens' starter and won 11 straight starts en route to a Super Bowl title.
Brunell also threw a 35-yard touchdown pass to Jimmy Smith in the third quarter, but Jacksonville (2-4), lost for the four straight time after opening the season with consecutive wins.
"We fought hard today and gave it our best," Brunell said. "We're tired of losing, though. We did some good things today, but it wasn't enough. This game was within our grasp. We're leaving here with another loss."
"I take no solace in losing," Jaguars coach Tom Coughlin said. "I'm proud of the effort we got. They played hard. They wanted it very, very badly. Obviously, I felt we should've won."
It was a huge day for both Smith and Keenan McCardell. Smith had seven catches for 119 yards while McCardell had 10 for 118 yards.
In a defensive struggle, the Ravens opened a 6-3 lead early in the third quarter on Matt Stover's 28-yard field goal.
It looked as if Baltimore would take over from there after Brunell fumbled on the next play from scrimmage and the Ravens recovered deep in Jacksonville territory. But the big play was nullified by an illegal hands to the face penalty on cornerback James Trapp.
Baltimore, which allowed the fewest points (165) in a 16-game season in 2000, did pin the Jaguars inside the 10 later in the third quarter. But using a variety of a short passes, Brunell got the Jaguars out of trouble and on the move.
Brunell led the Jaguars 90 yards in eight plays against the vaunted Baltimore defense before capping the drive with a 35-yard touchdown pass to Smith, who beat cornerback Duane Starks to give Jacksonville a 10-6 lead with 1:20 left in the quarter.
Things got worse for the Ravens on their next possession after Cunningham had his pass go off the hands of running back James Brookins and into the waiting arms of linebacker Hardy Nickerson for an interception at the Baltimore 45.
Two plays after the miscue, Brunell found Mack in the left corner of the end zone for an 11-yard touchdown and a 17-6 advantage seven seconds into the fourth quarter.
Brunell went 25 of 37 for 306 yards and two touchdowns. He also led the Jaguars with 55 yards on the ground, including a career-long 35-yard run in the first half.
With a hush falling over the third-largest crowd (69,439) in PSINet Stadium history, Cunningham finally got the Ravens moving on their next possession.
Cunningham had key completions of 19 yards to Ismail and a 13-yard connection to fullback Sam Gash as Baltimore went 71 yards in nine plays.
Brookins capped the march with a two-yard run with 9:48 remaining, pulling Baltimore within 17-12. Brookins rushed for 70 of his 82 yards after halftime.
After the Ravens stuffed the Jaguars on their next possession, Cunningham went to work again, moving Baltimore 56 yards in eight plays for the winning points.
Cunningham had a huge 16-yard completion to Ismail on the drive and a 15-yard facemask penalty on cornerback Jason Craft put Baltimore at the Jaguars 29. Cunningham also hit tight end Shannon Sharpe for 13 yards on third and three, moving the ball to the two.
Two plays later, Cunningham found a sliding Ismail in the right corner of the end zone for a two-yard touchdown, giving Baltimore an 18-17 lead. The Jaguars challenged the play, claiming the ball hit the ground, but the call stood.
"I craddled it in. It was good, no question," Ismail said. "Technology saw it and you all saw it."
"I couldn't tell what happened. After I threw it, I saw the refs hands go up and that felt good," Cunningham said.
Cunningham finished 23 of 31 for 222 yards with one touchdown and one interception. He also was sacked five times.
