Surging Ravens return to playoff picture
Jackson’s heroics to beat Browns have Baltimore brimming with confidence
An emotional, uplifting victory on the road against a division rival strongly enhanced the Baltimore Ravens’ chances of reaching the playoffs and provided a positive vibe during a season that has been marred by injuries, a three-game skid and an outbreak of COVID-19.
Now, with a soft schedule in front of them, the Ravens need to get healthy and finish strong.
Baltimore (8-5) used a brilliant finish by quarterback Lamar Jackson and a 55-yard field goal by reliable Justin
Tucker to squeeze out a 47-42 victory over the Cleveland Browns on Monday night.
Jackson missed one series and part of another with cramps before emerging from the locker room to lead a pair of scoring drives in the closing minutes after the Ravens’ short-handed defense blew a 14-point lead.
Soon after the epic duel ended, coach John Harbaugh declared, “It’s a game that’s going to go down in history. Our guys had faith and trust and belief, and sometimes, that’s what it takes.”
Baltimore’s strength is its running game, and that was really the key to victory against the Browns in spite of Jackson’s crisp passing in the waning moments. Jackson accounted for 124 of Baltimore’s 231 yards rushing on just nine carries, and the Ravens tallied five touchdowns on the ground.
Baltimore has run for at least 100 yards in 36 consecutive games, seven short of the NFL record.
Baltimore’s defense barely made it to the finish after injuries in the secondary forced special teams standout Anthony Levine to join the fray and cornerback Marcus Peters to limp into the huddle without consulting with team doctors.
“We had so many guys going down on defense, just trying to get 11 guys on the field was a challenge,” Harbaugh said.
The victory was Baltimore’s second following a three-game losing streak perpetuated by a bout with COVID-19 that depleted the roster and caused the rescheduling of matchups with the Steelers and Dallas.
Still, the Ravens are not assured a playoff berth, even if they win out against Jacksonville (1-12), the New York Giants (5-8) and Cincinnati (210-1). Baltimore is chasing several teams for a wild-card spot, including Miami, also 8-5 but currently with the tiebreaking edge because of winning percentage within the conference.
“All these games coming up are playoff games,” tight end Mark Andrews said.
Injured
After Jackson left, Trace McSorley entered as the only backup available at quarterback. McSorley twisted his knee during his second series, leaving wide receiver Willie Snead to start taking practice snaps before Jackson returned.
The Ravens placed McSorley on injured reserve on Tuesday, and with Robert Griffin III also on the IR with a hamstring issue, the Ravens will need a backup or two before their next game. ... Cornerback Jimmy Smith left Monday’s game with a shoulder injury. It came after he already missed three games this year because of injury. Keeping him healthy has always been an issue.