Ravens’ Jackson able to beat Browns despite rough night

BALTIMORE — On a night he threw a career-high four interceptions, Lamar Jackson still produced one incredible moment of brilliance.

That was enough for the Baltimore Ravens, who now have the best record in the AFC after gutting out another tense victory.

Jackson pulled off one of his signature scrambles in the third quarter, buying enough time to throw a 13-yard touchdown pass to Mark Andrews, and the Ravens went on to a 16-10 victory against visiting Cleveland on Sunday night.

Jackson, who returned after missing last weekend’s victory against Chicago with an illness, was subpar aside from that one TD throw.

“Our defense just played lightsout today,” Jackson said. “I’m ticked off, but I told all those guys: ‘Way to have our back, way to have my back.’ ”

Both teams spent much of their prime-time showcase making crucial mistakes. Baltimore managed only one touchdown, but Jackson made it memorable. Dogged by Cleveland’s pass rush all night, he zig-zagged all the way back to about the 35-yard line before lofting a pass over the middle to a remarkably open Andrews in the end zone.

That made it 13-3, and the Ravens (8-3) held on from there. They are now 6-1 in games decided by eight points or fewer.

Cleveland (6-6) never could get its running game — which entered ranked No. 1 in the league — going against the Baltimore defensive front. Nick Chubb managed only 16 yards on eight carries, and Kareem Hunt had 20 yards on seven attempts.

“Our run game has been very good and we’ve run against loaded boxes like that,” Browns coach Kevin Stefanski said. “As a run offense, we’ve done better than that.”

Ravens coach John Harbaugh improved to 18-2 in prime-time games at home and 23-4 overall against the Browns.

“Defense was just off the charts,” Harbaugh said. “That’s one of the best defensive performances that we’ve seen out here in a long time.”

Baker Mayfield threw a 20-yard touchdown pass to David Njoku late in the third quarter, but Cleveland didn’t score again. Up 13-10, the Ravens took over with 6:28 remaining in the game and nearly ran out the rest of the clock. A holding call on guard Ben Powers helped stall that drive, and Justin Tucker’s 49-yard field goal pushed the lead to six with 1:10 to play.

This was a far cry from December, when these teams played one of the most exciting games of the 2020 NFL season — a 47-42 Ravens victory in Cleveland. This time, a quiet first half devolved into a series of miscues toward the end of the second quarter, including five turnovers in the final 3:04.

Browns right tackle Jack Conklin will undergo surgery after suffering a season-ending right knee injury Sunday night, a crushing blow to a Cleveland offense struggling to score.

Conklin ruptured his patellar tendon while pass blocking in the first quarter against the Ravens.

NICK WASS/ASSOCIATED PRESS Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson looks to pass during the first half Sunday night in Baltimore. “Our defense just played lights-out today,” said Jackson, who had a subpar night overall.