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So much for not saying too much, as running back Derrick Henry offered last week. It turns out that it was Ravens coach John Harbaugh who came up with the “hurricane” play — the fake “tush push” in which tight end Mark Andrews lined up under center against the Cleveland Browns on Sunday, spun around and turned a critical fourth-and-1 in the fourth quarter into a 35-yard backbreaking touchdown. That was according to Baltimore cornerback Marlon Humphrey, who let the cat out of the bag earlier this week on his eponymous podcast. “I go up to an offensive coach, I’m like, ‘Dude, who came up with that play? I’ve never seen that. We ran that in practice?” Humphrey said. “They’re like, ‘Man, Harbs came up with it.’ I go up to Harbs after the game and I’m like, ‘Hey, you a bad man. You’re a bad freaking man.’ He said he came up with it. He said obviously, it was a team effort on how it was going to work, but he came up with it.” Indeed, multiple players, including fullback Patrick Ricard, said after the 23-16 victory in Cleveland that the play was just put into practice last week and run only a few times. Harbaugh also said Wednesday that “everybody” was involved in the play and there was “a lot of conversation” about it. He acknowledged, too, that it was born out of Baltimore’s Week 6 loss to the Los Angeles Rams. In that game, the Ravens were trailing 10-3 late in the second quarter and had a second-and-goal from the Rams’ 1-yard line when they twice in a row ran a tush push with Andrews to no avail. Then, on fourth-and-goal from the 1, Henry was stuffed for a 2-yard loss. Los Angeles eventually went on to win, 17-3. Short-yardage situations have been a problem for the Ravens all season. They rank near the bottom of the NFL in both goal-to-go situations and red zone scoring. So that has forced coaches to get creative. Clinging to a 2-point lead and faced with a third-and-1 from the Vikings’ 14-yard line in the third quarter in Minnesota two weeks ago, Andrews lined up under center for what appeared to be another tush push. Only this time when he took the snap he moved to his right and tossed the ball to quarterback Lamar Jackson, who picked up 3 yards on a sweep to the right. Then came Sunday’s touchdown against the Browns, on which Andrews reached 20.09 mph on his way untouched into the end zone with fullback Ricard and tight end Charlie Kolar helping clear the way. “When people over-exaggerate defending the quarterback sneak, and you’d hope that plays like that, or the Lamar play [in Minnesota] — the toss play — would be plays that would loosen people up a little bit in the quarterback sneaks,” Harbaugh said. “So, we’ll see how that affects that part of it, too, moving forward.” Andrews, meanwhile, said Wednesday that he has seen the play ad nauseam since it happened. He’s also ready to move on from it. Related Articles Ravens injury report: Several starters missing at Wednesday’s practice Ravens QB Lamar Jackson misses Wednesday’s practice with new injury Ravens reset: Now back to .500, team readies for a playoff push Watch Episode 12 of the BMore Football Podcast with The Baltimore Sun’s Mike Preston and Jerry Coleman presented by Rice Law AFC North standings favor Steelers. Betting odds say Ravens are in control. “I was telling Harbs, I was like, ‘I think I’m kind of tired of seeing it, man,’” Andrews said. “I’m ready to move on and make the next play. But it was obviously an awesome play, and everybody did their job, and it was incredible. So, it was really, really cool.” It also might not be the last weather-related play Baltimore uses this season. When Harbaugh was asked why it’s called “hurricane” he said they have other plays with weather-related names as well. Said Harbaugh: “Tornado and monsoon are both in the hopper. They are, oh yes.” The Ravens’ next chance to use one will come Sunday at home against the New York Jets. Have a news tip? Contact Brian Wacker at bwacker@baltsun.com, 410-332-6200 and x.com/brianwacker1. View the full article

Seven regular starters were missing from Ravens practice Wednesday. That list is headlined by quarterback Lamar Jackson and includes several other key contributors such as safety Kyle Hamilton and linebacker Roquan Smith. In the win over Cleveland, Hamilton appeared to take a hard fall and grabbed at his right arm. He stayed in the game. Hamilton’s body language wreaked of discomfort on the final drive but he refused to come off the field. It’s not yet clear if that’s the reason that he didn’t practice. The official injury report will be released Wednesday afternoon. The Ravens host the New York Jets at 1 p.m. Sunday for their first of a three-game home stand. Smith did not take the field Wednesday, ending a healthy stretch run since the bye week for the centerpiece of Baltimore’s defense. The All-Pro middle linebacker suffered a hamstring injury in Week 4 that put him on the shelf for two games. He returned to practice on Oct. 20 and has played at a high level since, totaling 34 tackles and three pass deflections over the past four weeks. Smith was seen in the locker room after practice, which is generally a positive indicator for his health. “When it comes to their defense, everything revolves around Kyle and Roquan,” Jets coach Aaron Glenn told local reporters Wednesday. “Two really good players.” Baltimore also practiced without two starting offensive linemen: left tackle Ronnie Stanley and left guard Andrew Vorhees. Tight end Isaiah Likely didn’t practice, nor did wide receiver Rashod Bateman, who suffered an ankle sprain on a hip-drop tackle in Minnesota. Harbaugh said last week that he thinks the third-year receiver “is going to be OK.” Cornerback and special teamer Keyon Martin was the only non-starter absent Wednesday. The undrafted rookie, who registered his first career sack against the Browns, spent Sunday night at a Cleveland hospital undergoing tests for a chest injury. Reports came back negative, Harbaugh said, and “it didn’t turn out to be a serious thing.” Martin was back in Baltimore a day later but not ready for practice by Wednesday. Amid the chaos arrived some good news. Marlon Humphrey returned to practice after doctors put a pin in his finger to address a minor hand injury. The All-Pro cornerback opted for the surgery that kept him out against Cleveland, but Harbaugh expected his return within a week. Running back Justice Hill practiced after a toe injury sidelined him versus the Browns. Hill missed two practices last week, took the field Friday in a limited capacity, missed Sunday’s game and was back out there Wednesday. Two more could be back in the mix shortly. Outside linebacker Tavius Robinson broke his foot and went on injured reserve four weeks ago. Safety Ar’Darius Washington tore his Achilles tendon in May. Harbaugh said both are “getting close” to returning. Same with rookie offensive lineman Emery Jones Jr., who underwent shoulder surgery after the NFL scouting combine and is now “getting pretty close to being ready to play,” according to Harbaugh. By all accounts, the Jets are healthy. The biggest news out of New York, which is 2-8 and traded its two best players at the deadline, is the change at quarterback. Glenn confirmed reports from earlier in the week that former Ravens backup Tyrod Taylor would be the starter on Sunday over Justin Fields. Harbaugh called Taylor “a heck of a quarterback” who poses a “big challenge.” Have a news tip? Contact Sam Cohn at scohn@baltsun.com, 410-332-6200 and x.com/samdcohn. Related Articles Ravens QB Lamar Jackson misses Wednesday’s practice before game vs. Jets Ravens reset: Now back to .500, team readies for a playoff push Watch Episode 12 of the BMore Football Podcast with The Baltimore Sun’s Mike Preston and Jerry Coleman presented by Rice Law AFC North standings favor Steelers. Betting odds say Ravens are in control. Ravens’ LaJohntay Wester learns from muffed punt: ‘Protect it with my life’ View the full article

Another week, another absence for Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson. For the second straight Wednesday, Jackson was missing from practice in Owings Mills. He also took some significant hits in each of the past two games against the Minnesota Vikings and Cleveland Browns. In Sunday’s win in Cleveland, he was sacked five times, four of them coming courtesy of Myles Garrett. After the game, as Jackson sat and waited to speak to reporters, a blood stain soaked through the white tights under his uniform pants at his knee. He also stood up slowly, though did not appear to have any obvious or serious injuries. Whether Jackson’s absence puts his status for Sunday’s game against the New York Jets in jeopardy remains to be seen. Last week, he returned to practice on Thursday and Friday, clearing the way for him to start against the Browns. Jackson then had his worst game of the season against Cleveland’s second-ranked defense, completing just 14 of 25 passes for 193 yards with no touchdowns and two interceptions for a passer rating of 47.6, one of the lowest marks of his career. Baltimore won, 23-16, but the contest clearly took its toll on the two-time NFL Most Valuable Player. Already, Jackson has missed three games this season because of a hamstring injury he suffered in the third quarter of a Week 4 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs. The Ravens lost two straight with Cooper Rush starting in his place before Tyler Huntley got the start against the Chicago Bears in Week 7 and helped guide the Ravens to victory. Jackson returned the following week for a Thursday night game against the Miami Dolphins at Hard Rock Stadium and threw four touchdowns and had a near-perfect passer rating in a comfortable 28-6 win. But the following week against the Vikings in Minnesota, he again struggled, completing 17 of 29 passes for 176 yards and one touchdown. He has also not been the same dynamic runner this season that he has been in past seasons, with just 39 attempts for 226 yards and one touchdown. That’s a dramatic drop-off from last season, when he had 139 carried for 915 yards and four scores, and Jackson’s 32.3 rushing yards per game this year are the fewest of his eight-year career. On Monday, coach John Harbaugh scoffed at questions over Jackson running less frequently, though. “I was happy with some of the runs [Sunday],” he said. “He got out of the pocket a few times when we really needed him to and got us some yards and saved us a couple of times. I thought he also — I give him a lot of credit — he was under duress a few times where, in that kind of a game, he made some decisions, too, to protect the football, which was big. So, I thought he played a really smart game that way.” Asked in a follow-up question about Jackson running less on the year, Harbaugh said he didn’t “have an answer for that.” Related Articles Ravens injury report: Several starters missing at Wednesday’s practice Ravens reset: Now back to .500, team readies for a playoff push Watch Episode 12 of the BMore Football Podcast with The Baltimore Sun’s Mike Preston and Jerry Coleman presented by Rice Law AFC North standings favor Steelers. Betting odds say Ravens are in control. Ravens’ LaJohntay Wester learns from muffed punt: ‘Protect it with my life’ “Next thing you know, Lamar will break out and run for 100 yards,” he continued. The Ravens have won four straight games to get back to .500 and are a game back of the AFC North-leading Pittsburgh Steelers. Harbaugh is scheduled to speak with reporters after practice. This article will be updated. Have a news tip? Contact Brian Wacker at bwacker@baltsun.com, 410-332-6200 and x.com/brianwacker1. View the full article

The Ravens have gone from the precipice of the abyss and staring into the void to suddenly being within reach. If the playoffs began today, Baltimore would still be on the outside looking in. So would the three-time defending AFC champion Kansas City Chiefs. Alas, seven games remain, and a playoff spot as well as a third straight AFC North title now seem possible, the latter being something that would net at least a home wild-card game in January. The goal coming into the year, of course, was a Super Bowl title. But the NFL is about adjustments, and that goes for expectations, too. Starting a season 1-5 doesn’t afford many other options. Baltimore has rattled off four straight wins to get back to .500 and is just a game back of the division-leading Pittsburgh Steelers, providing more than a glint of optimism, though no one’s making reservations for Santa Clara, California, in February yet. “Our heads are just above water,” coach John Harbaugh said Sunday evening in Cleveland following a 23-16 victory. “We’re just above water; we’re breathing. We’re not even out of the water.” So, now what? Here’s a look at what’s been good, what hasn’t, what’s ahead and more with just under two months remaining in the regular season: Defense continues to turn pages Over its first five games, Baltimore allowed a staggering 35.4 points and 408.8 yards per game. Over its most recent five, those numbers have been slashed dramatically to 14.8 and 299.4, respectively. The biggest reasons: Safety Kyle Hamilton being deployed in myriad positions near the line of scrimmage, players returning from injuries and the quality of quarterbacks they have faced. Hamilton’s influence as a position-less do-it-all defender has been well-documented, and his stat line Sunday — six tackles, including three for loss, a sack, a forced fumble and a quarterback hit — was just the latest example of his abilities. “He made it really hard on the running backs, just to block him, and then his length, too. [He’s] batting balls down and those kinds of things,” Harbaugh said. “He was just impactful — he always is — but he was super impactful the whole game, pretty much in every way you can be impactful.” It’s worth remembering, too, that the Ravens at one point had to start five rookies on defense — including three undrafted free agents — amid the slide and were also without starting quarterback Lamar Jackson for part of one game and all of the next three because of a hamstring injury. Then there are the quarterbacks they’ve faced. The first six games featured a murderers’ row of reigning NFL Most Valuable Player Josh Allen, former Raven Joe Flacco, Jared Goff, Patrick Mahomes, C.J. Stroud and Matthew Stafford. Over the past four, the drop-off has been considerable, with Caleb Williams, Tua Tagovailoa, J.J. McCarthy and Dillon Gabriel/Shedeur Sanders. Now comes another former Raven, Tyrod Taylor, who will start for the lowly 2-8 New York Jets on Sunday in Baltimore over the benched Justin Fields. Still, you can only beat who you play, and the defense has handled its opponents. Only two teams — the Cincinnati Bengals and San Francisco 49ers — have fewer sacks, and the Ravens’ pressure rate is also near the bottom of the league, but Baltimore has been more aggressive and forced more turnovers of late with 10 over the past five games. If nothing else, that has provided a jolt of confidence to a unit that was playing scared to make a mistake earlier in the season. Red zone struggles One area the Ravens still haven’t figured out is how to be better in the red zone. After scoring touchdowns 74.2% of the time from the opponent’s 20-yard line and in to rank first in 2024, they have been inexplicably abysmal this season, finding pay dirt just 47.2% of the time to rank 28th. Related Articles Watch Episode 12 of the BMore Football Podcast with The Baltimore Sun’s Mike Preston and Jerry Coleman presented by Rice Law AFC North standings favor Steelers. Betting odds say Ravens are in control. Ravens’ LaJohntay Wester learns from muffed punt: ‘Protect it with my life’ Ravens coach John Harbaugh defends O-line amid struggles: ‘Darn good’ READER POLL: Should Maryland invest more resources into its football program? Some of that could understandably be attributed to being without Jackson for a few games, but they haven’t been much better since his return, scoring a touchdown on six of 12 red zone trips in three games. Over the past two, they’ve been even worse, converting just three of nine opportunities, which included having to settle for field goals on two first-and-goal opportunities from inside the Browns’ 10-yard line on Sunday. What gives? It could be several things, from predictability to an offensive line that is struggling to move people to perhaps Jackson not being quite as dangerous with his legs as he once was to defenses being able to hone in on Derrick Henry more effectively because of all of the above. Whatever the reasons, it has become a point of emphasis. “Some plays could have been executed better. Some plays, they did a great job of defending,” Harbaugh said of Cleveland. “But bigger picture, that’s an important part of the field for us. We want to score touchdowns down there, and you at least want to protect the three as well.” Injury updates Ravens rookie cornerback Keyon Martin isn’t sure what play he suffered the injury on, but he knew after the adrenaline of Sunday’s victory had faded that there was a problem. Martin, 24, felt a “sharp pain” in his chest, so out of an abundance of caution, he spent the night in a Cleveland hospital for a series of tests and scans while the team flew back to Baltimore. The results came back negative and it turned out to be a deep chest bruise, according to his agent Marcell Owens, who added that the undrafted free agent out of Louisiana is recovering and doing much better. Ravens cornerback Marlon Humphrey, shown intercepting a pass against the Vikings, is expected to return soon from his finger injury. (Abbie Parr/AP) Martin, who has been a regular on special teams, played 18 defensive snaps (32.7%) against the Browns while helping fill the void for injured cornerback Marlon Humphrey, and finished with a pass breakup and his first career sack. How much time Martin misses, if any, remains to be seen, but Humphrey, who had a pin inserted in a dislocated finger on his left hand, should be back this week, Harbaugh said. Other players who could soon be back include outside linebackers Tavius Robinson and Adisa Isaac, as well as safety Ar’Darius Washington. Robinson, who broke his foot in Week 6 against the Los Angeles Rams, and Isaac, who dislocated his elbow in the preseason, have been slated for a mid-to-late November return, though neither has returned to practice yet. Washington, who suffered a torn Achilles tendon in May, worked out on a side field for the first time last week and is on a similar timeline. Having all of them back for the last few games of the regular season would provide a boost of much-needed depth, particularly if they make the playoffs. Taking advantage of the schedule — for now At least part of Baltimore’s turnaround can no doubt be attributed to what has been a softer schedule. The Ravens’ first six opponents — the Buffalo Bills, Browns, Detroit Lions, Chiefs, Houston Texans and Rams — have combined for 33 wins and 27 losses this season. Their past four opponents — the Chicago Bears, Miami Dolphins, Minnesota Vikings and Browns — have just 15 wins and 24 losses between them. Taking advantage of the next four games will also be critical. Ravens coach John Harbaugh speaks during Monday's news conference. Harbaugh's team has benefited from a soft schedule in recent weeks after a challenging stretch to open the season. (Surya Vaidy/Staff) After the Jets, the Ravens play the 3-7 Bengals at home on Thanksgiving, followed by a trip to Pittsburgh 10 days later to face the Steelers. Then they’ll play at Cincinnati, where they could be facing Joe Burrow, who returned to practice last week and opened his 21-day window to return from a turf toe injury that has kept him sidelined since Week 2. It’s possible that Burrow could return for the Thanksgiving night tilt in Baltimore, but it’s more likely he’ll do so the following week against the Bills. Whenever he comes back, things only get tougher for the Ravens after their trip to Cincinnati, with a home game against the 9-2 New England Patriots followed by road games against the Green Bay Packers and the Steelers. Put another way, as hot as they’ve been over the past month, there is little margin for error over the next seven weeks. Have a news tip? Contact Brian Wacker at bwacker@baltsun.com, 410-332-6200 and x.com/brianwacker1. View the full article

Episode 12 of the BMore Football Podcast with The Baltimore Sun’s Mike Preston and Jerry Coleman presented by Rice Law is here. Preston and Coleman break down the Ravens’ four-game winning streak and the defense’s recent improvement. Baltimore (5-5) trails Pittsburgh (6-4) by one game in the AFC North after its win over the Browns, but the Ravens still have both head-to-head meetings with the Steelers left on their schedule. This week, Baltimore hosts the New York Jets. You can watch it weekly, posting every Tuesday during the NFL season on YouTube and The Baltimore Sun, and listen on Spotify, Apple, Amazon and iHeart. Have a news tip? Contact Mike Preston at epreston@baltsun.com, 410-332-6467 and x.com/MikePrestonSun. View the full article

The Steelers own a one-game lead in the AFC North in mid-November, and Ravens coach John Harbaugh says his 5-5 team is “just above water.” That scenario might’ve felt dire in late August, but sportsbooks disagree with Harbaugh’s assessment. The Ravens are a significant betting favorite to win the division despite trailing in the standings. FanDuel gives Baltimore -280 odds to win the AFC North, with Pittsburgh (6-4) holding +260 odds. The sportsbook suggests it’s a two-team race, with Cincinnati ( holding +2500 odds. The Browns have +30000 odds, as their fans might as well shift their focus to the NFL draft. “Yes, it’s a down year for the Ravens,” CBS Sports betting analyst Mackenzie Brooks said this week. “Turns out it’s a down year for just about everyone else in the AFC.” She makes a good point. Typical AFC contenders in the Bills and Chiefs are both underdogs to win their respective divisions with the Patriots and Broncos surpassing expectations. Power ratings — most computer models still view Baltimore as a top NFL team despite a 1-5 start — and strength of schedule both play an important role in the current AFC North odds. Baltimore’s remaining strength of schedule is the 21st toughest in the NFL, according to ESPN data. Pittsburgh’s ranks ninth. The Steelers also have a significant injury issue to monitor. Quarterback Aaron Rodgers injured his left wrist and could miss at least one game because of the injury. Mason Rudolph is the team’s backup quarterback, should Rodgers miss time. The Steelers play the Bears, Bills and Ravens in the coming three weeks. Interestingly, Baltimore began the year as a -155 favorite to win the division. Despite starting 1-5 and dealing with a rash of injuries, the Ravens actually have better odds to win the AFC North than before the first week of the season. Baltimore’s Lamar Jackson has played in three straight games after a hamstring injury kept him out of the preceding three games. The Ravens are 4-3 in games started by Jackson in 2025, winning the past three. The Ravens’ defense is also improving, holding opponents to under 20 points in five straight weeks after doing that just once in the first five games of the year. “We hope that one day — one of these games — the defense is going to go play lights-out, offense is going to play lights-out,” safety Kyle Hamilton said after Sunday’s win over the Browns. “But it’s not guaranteed in this league, and it rarely happens. … It doesn’t matter what the situation is in the game, if there’s a blade of grass to defend, we’re going to defend it.” Super Bowl odds Winning the AFC North title is one thing. Winning the Super Bowl takes more than gritty wins over Cleveland. After starting the year as the favorite to lift the Lombardi Trophy come February, the Ravens’ odds have plummeted, even amid their four-game winning streak. The Ravens sit at +1300 to win the championship on FanDuel, the eighth shortest odds of any team in the NFL. The Eagles (+500), Rams (+650), Bills (+800), Colts (+1000), Chiefs (+1000), Lions (+1100) and Seahawks (+1200) all hold shorter odds. Baltimore is 0-4 against those teams this season. These are the 10 teams with the shortest odds via FanDuel to win the Super Bowl: Eagles, +500 Rams, +650 Bills, +800 Colts, +1000 Chiefs, +1000 Lions, +1100 Seahawks, +1200 Ravens, +1300 Broncos, +1400 Packers, +1500 At least one analyst isn’t counting Baltimore out yet despite its .500 record through 10 games. Related Articles Ravens’ LaJohntay Wester learns from muffed punt: ‘Protect it with my life’ Ravens coach John Harbaugh defends O-line amid struggles: ‘Darn good’ READER POLL: Should Maryland invest more resources into its football program? 5 things we learned from the Ravens’ 23-16 win over the Browns Josh Tolentino: The Ravens won ugly, and that’s OK | COMMENTARY “If this team gets to the postseason, and I think they will, who’s going to want to play them?” CBS analyst Pete Prisco said during an NFL Week 11 recap show. “You look at them and you compare them to the Denver Broncos and the New England Patriots. They get in, who would you rather play?” Prisco mentioned regular-season successes followed by postseason failures defining the Lamar Jackson era. “Well, this year, maybe it’s the opposite,” Prisco said. Have a news tip? Contact sports editor Bennett Conlin at bconlin@baltsun.com, 410-332-6200 and x.com/BennettConlin. View the full article

That pesky Cleveland wind roaring off the shores of Lake Erie, a talking point all of last week, bit LaJohntay Wester in a crucial spot Sunday. The sixth-round rookie stood 10 yards in front of the end zone, planted between the painted one and zero. A gust of wind redirected the ball. Wester chased it closer to the hashes extending for a futile diving effort. The football slipped through his grasp. It dribbled behind him where the Browns recovered, earning possession at the 6-yard line with the game tied early in the second quarter. Baltimore’s defense bailed Wester out thanks to an impressive goal-line stand, holding the Browns to a field goal. Still, Ravens coach John Harbaugh called it a “challenging ball.” One that Wester should “definitely want to get away from.” “It’s probably his first game playing in those kind of conditions, with that kind of wind, in an AFC-North-type of a stadium, with that kind of a ‘cutter’ ball,” Harbaugh said. “It was a left-footed punter, and the ball’s cutting away from him. That’s probably one of the most challenging — especially at that end of that stadium.” Wester thought he tracked the football OK. His focus slipped off the ball to peek at how much room he’d have to return. Two defenders were closing in. When he locked eyes with it again, the ball had sailed five yards to his left. “I tried to adjust last minute, and I ended up muffing it,” he said. Wester is an electrifying returner. General manager Eric DeCosta called him “twitchy” and “explosive” after using a sixth-round pick on the return specialist in April. Wester has been itching for a house call since. He took one all the way back in the preseason, a glimpse at what’s possible. And a few shoe-string tackles have tripped him up shy of finding open field since. His only other muffed punt this season came against the Rams, which was negated by a penalty. Wester capitalized on the do-over with a 35-yard return, his longest of the season. His 14.4 yards per return rank eighth in the NFL. Sunday’s win showed both sides of the coin, having an aggressive, 23-year-old, Day 3 pick back there ready to burst. He muffed a punt he should’ve let bounce into the end zone. And earlier in the game, Wester fielded one at the 2-yard line, another hindsight would say he probably should have let dribble away, that he returned to the 21-yard line. He was more cautious the next time. Cleveland punted on a short field in the fourth quarter and Wester made no play on the ball that bounced near the 5-yard line. The Browns nearly pinned Baltimore at the half-yard line if not for a friendly review showing a toe touching blades of grass at the goal line. “You don’t want to be hard and fast too much,” Harbaugh said. “But you do want to have principles built around the rule.” For years, conventional wisdom said if the ball was landing inside 10, don’t risk it. “Those days have changed a little bit,” Harbaugh said. A line-drive kick provides some extra space to run or a chip shot can pin a team deep. Wester is still figuring out how to manage some of those kicks. His coach called him “really accountable.” “I didn’t know I caught it at the 2 until I got to the sideline,” Wester said postgame, admitting he lost where his feet were. “I trust my guys that are blocking for me, and [Cleveland’s Corey Bojorquez] kicked a returnable ball to me. I feel like I’m the type player to be able to flip the field.” The coaching staff has trusted his decision making in the past. Last week in Minnesota, with lighter conditions protected by the Vikings’ dome, Wester similarly tracked a kickoff at the 2-yard line and ran it back 20 yards. Special teams coordinator Chris Horton said “that ball could have easily” been downed but Wester “made the right decision in that situation.” Related Articles Ravens coach John Harbaugh defends O-line amid struggles: ‘Darn good’ READER POLL: Should Maryland invest more resources into its football program? 5 things we learned from the Ravens’ 23-16 win over the Browns Josh Tolentino: The Ravens won ugly, and that’s OK | COMMENTARY Mike Preston: Ravens bully bad quarterbacks. More are coming. | COMMENTARY So what exactly did a muffed punt, a gutsy return and a nearly fatal surrender on Sunday — all in blustery AFC North conditions — teach him? “I know now that when the ball is in the air, that’s mine,” Wester said. “And I have the whole organization on my back, so I have to protect it with my life.” Have a news tip? Contact Sam Cohn at scohn@baltsun.com, 410-332-6200 and x.com/samdcohn. View the full article

The Ravens won the war Sunday in Cleveland, rallying and then hanging on to defeat the Browns, 23-16. But along the way they lost the battle — at least when it came to their offensive line. Quarterback Lamar Jackson was sacked five times and pressured on 23 occasions, per Pro Football Focus. Some of it was to be expected. The Browns entered the critical AFC North showdown with the NFL’s second-ranked defense and led by league sack leader and All-Pro edge rusher Myles Garrett, who now has 15 sacks in 10 games after racking up four more against Baltimore. Yet, it doesn’t sound like coach John Harbaugh is ready to make any changes to the offensive line. Asked on Monday if he is seeing the necessary progress with the group, he said he is. “You put the best five players out there, the five guys that are playing the best,” he continued. “That’s what you do. It’s not even a hard answer. “So the question is pretty much yeah, put the best five players out there and they’re playing pretty darn good. Can they play better? Sure.” Against the Browns, though, they were often exposed. Right guard Daniel Faalele, in particular, struggled. He had a 23.2 pass blocking grade, per PFF, and allowed three pressures. On one play near the end of the second quarter, rookie defensive tackle Mason Graham charged in, smacked Faalele so hard that he spun him completely around and raced in on Jackson before Garrett chased the quarterback down from behind for a sack. Later, on a third-and-1 from Cleveland’s 35-yard line with 3:17 remaining in the game and the score tied at 16, Faalele was slow off the snap and then shoved back a yard, helping lead to Derrick Henry getting stuffed on the play. Tight end Mark Andrews then saved the day with a spectacular 35-yard touchdown one play later. Faalele also wasn’t the lone Ravens lineman to struggle. Left tackle Ronnie Stanley, who was a Pro Bowl selection last season but has not been as sharp this year along with dealing with an ankle injury, allowed a team-high four pressures and got a season-low PFF pass blocking grade of 33.9. Right tackle Roger Rosengarten, whom Garrett at one point tossed to the ground with one hand, a 57.5 and two pressures. It wasn’t all bad, of course. Pro Bowl center Tyler Linderbaum and left guard Andrew Vorhees, who has often been the weakest link among the group this season, both graded out respectably. Faalele was also one of the players who helped spring Derrick Henry’s 59-yard run. But nearly every week, the offensive line has been a topic of discussion. Lions edge rusher Al-Quadin Muhammad sacks Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson earlier this season. Baltimore's star quarterback has been sacked 23 times this season, despite missing a few games with an injury. (Karl Merton Ferron/Staff) Already, Jackson has been sacked 23 times this season, which is many times as he was all of last season. Some of those have come as a result of him either hanging onto the ball looking for a receiver to get open or finish a route or by turning back into the rush as he tries to buy time in the pocket, as was the case at least a couple of times on Sunday. Other times, though, the men charged with blocking for him have labored to do so, especially in the passing game, with Baltimore ranked 24th in pass block win rate, per ESPN analytics, before the Browns game. In a Week 3 loss at home to the Lions, Detroit pressured Jackson a whopping 30 times. That led to him getting sacked seven times, tying a career high, in the 38-30 defeat. On two other occasions this season, he has been sacked at least three times in a game. Jackson was also knocked out in the third quarter of a Week 4 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs with a hamstring injury after being sacked by George Karlaftis and missed the next three games. But if there is a better option up front — specifically at either guard spot — clearly Harbaugh doesn’t see one. Among the options on the 53-man roster for either are veteran and former third-round draft pick Ben Cleveland, second-year former Maryland standout Corey Bullock and third-round rookie Emery Jones Jr. But Cleveland has failed to emerge from multiple opportunities in recent years, Bullock perhaps lacks experience among other traits while Jones missed all of the spring and summer because of shoulder surgery and was only activated late last month. The only other offensive linemen on the roster are veteran Joseph Noteboom and sixth-round rookie Carson Vinson, both of whom are tackles. The Ravens did sign former first-round pick Kenyon Green to join 25-year-old Jared Penning on the practice squad last month. But clearly coaches don’t view either one as an option. So for now, the Ravens will carry on with the same offensive line they’ve had all season, with Harbaugh adding that continuity plays a role in that decision as well. Related Articles Ravens’ LaJohntay Wester learns from muffed punt: ‘Protect it with my life’ READER POLL: Should Maryland invest more resources into its football program? 5 things we learned from the Ravens’ 23-16 win over the Browns Josh Tolentino: The Ravens won ugly, and that’s OK | COMMENTARY Mike Preston: Ravens bully bad quarterbacks. More are coming. | COMMENTARY What will it take for a change to be made? “You evaluate play by play,” he said. “Every single position you evaluate play for play for play for play. And some plays are great, some plays are good, some plays need to be better and you need to try to improve on them. So that’s how it goes with every position. There’s always going to be areas from one game to the next [we] can play better. “You put your team out there and you compete. All of our guys, including our offensive line fight and compete and get after it. None of our positions are perfect.” Have a news tip? Contact Brian Wacker at bwacker@baltsun.com, 410-332-6200 and x.com/brianwacker1. View the full article

Maryland is keeping its football coach. Michael Locksley will be back for his eighth season in 2026, new athletic director Jim Smith said on Sunday, ending speculation that the school might part ways with the coach. Smith, in his announcement, also said the school would devote more resources to the football program to better support Locksley. “Coach Locksley needs — and deserves — the full support of our department, our university, and all of Terp Nation. We are fully committed to giving him and our student-athletes the resources and investments necessary to succeed,” Smith said. “I have worked closely with Coach Locksley to rapidly strengthen our NIL support for 2026 and beyond, with a clear and focused effort on roster retention, recruiting, and being highly competitive in the transfer portal.” Should Maryland devote more resources into its football program? We want to hear from you. After you vote, leave a comment and we might use your take in The Baltimore Sun. The Baltimore Sun reader poll is an unscientific survey in which website users volunteer their opinions on the subject of the poll. To read the results of previous reader polls, click here. View the full article

After the Ravens escaped Cleveland with a 23-16 win and improved to 5-5, Baltimore’s famed former linebacker Terrell Suggs posted what everyone was thinking. “In traditional Ravens fashion,” he wrote on X, Sunday’s win gave fans “multiple heart attacks.” Here are five things we learned: The Ravens (barely) exorcised their demons in Cleveland For some reason, Cleveland — no matter how unimpressive the home football team — becomes the Bermuda Triangle when the Ravens are in town. Or the island in “Lost,” where mysterious anomalies are the norm. Weird stuff happens when the Ravens go play the Browns in Ohio (remember last year when Jameis Winston snapped a five-game win streak?). Much of Sunday was an ugly, comedy of errors on both sides. Lamar Jackson threw a pair of interceptions — one ricocheted off Keaton Mitchell’s hands for a pick-6 and the other, which doinked off an offensive lineman’s helmet, came one play after a Nate Wiggins interception. Myles Garrett sacked Jackson four times. There was a Ravens special teams muffed punt and an offsides infraction on punt team. One Browns rookie quarterback earned boos, completed the longest pass of his young career (26 yards) and later exited early for a concussion. His replacement was the highly anticipated Shedeur Sanders, who was met by cheers, sacked on his first drive and threw an interception on his second. Field goals in heavy wind and a trick play ultimately settled the score. “You need games like this during the season,” running back Derrick Henry said. “This is kind of like a playoff-style game.” Playoff style in the way that postseason games can be unpredictable, decided by one unexpected call or a gusty defensive stand. If nothing else, it tested the Ravens’ resolve. They found a way to win and swept the season series for the first time since 2020. Last year’s loss in Cleveland is a landmark reference point for the type of game the Ravens tend to let slip at least once per season. These Ravens dug themselves too deep of a hole to allow those issues to fester. Two bad-luck picks and special teams mistakes couldn’t fully weigh them down against the overmatched Browns. Nor could a delay-of-game penalty against Kyle Hamilton for kicking the ball in frustration after dropping an easy interception. Even he couldn’t help but remember the last time the Ravens played in Cleveland and he let slip the potential game-winner, joking, “I can’t seem to catch a pick in Cleveland for some reason.” Todd Monken is having fun with “tush push” variations The list of people wearing the Ravens logo on Sundays, Mondays and Thursdays who have taken heat for their 1-5 start and some of the shaky football that has persisted along this four-game win streak is long. Offensive coordinator Todd Monken’s name is right there near the top of any list. His group, which was historically dominant in 2023 and 2024, entered Sunday ranked 27th both in fourth-down conversions (42.86%) and red-zone scoring (50%). In seven games, Jackson has been sacked 23 times, which is how many times he was brought down all of last year. Harbaugh has been openly critical of their shortcomings. Monken, too, knows those metrics are “unacceptable.” Sunday evening, CBS cameras found him up in the booth at Huntington Bank Field. Monken, having just watched Mark Andrews break off the decisive 35-yard touchdown run from a trick play, casually sipped his water. Nobody would have blamed him if he swapped it out for whiskey and a cigar. “Hurricane” was the fourth-and-1 call. Harbaugh said there was talk on the headset of the faux tush push if they needed a short-yardage conversion. Jackson said they liked the way it looked in practice earlier in the week. Henry wouldn’t reveal much other than it “got repped to perfection.” Andrews, whose heroics overshadowed his own franchise record-breaking afternoon, lined up under center like he was preparing for a teammate to shove his derrière. Then he spun out to his right. A block from fullback Patrick Ricard opened the lane to a first down. “I trust Pat with my life,” Andrews said later. And tight end Charlie Kolar chipped Cleveland’s Carson Schwesinger enough to create a lane for Andrews to barrel through an opening and accelerate to 20.09 miles per hours. Kolar applauded his coaches for the play call after seeing the way Cleveland bunched up near the interior. “It was a great play,” he said. Monken didn’t so much as crack a grin. He sipped his water watching the Ravens — who finished 5-for-13 on third downs — convert the one play they really needed to. He pulled out the stops with some similar trickery in Minnesota. This one saved the day in Cleveland, even if there are lingering questions about the afternoon’s broader body of work. Defensive stands mask special teams mistakes At one point Sunday afternoon, Harbaugh doubled over. Hands on his knees. Head buried into his own chest. The longtime coach who got his start in special teams meeting rooms and has made the game’s third phase a priority in Baltimore had just watched two gaffes nearly cost them. Harbaugh looked like he wanted to vomit. LaJohntay Wester, the rookie returner with blazing wheels for feet, muffed a punt inside the 10-yard line. That handed Cleveland a free pass six yards from pay dirt. Three plays later, the Browns were right where they started thanks to an impressive goal line stand from the Ravens defense which seems to have become the norm lately. Related Articles Josh Tolentino: The Ravens won ugly, and that’s OK | COMMENTARY Mike Preston: Ravens bully bad quarterbacks. More are coming. | COMMENTARY The Baltimore Sun’s Ravens report card: Grades for 23-16 win over Browns Shedeur Sanders struggles in NFL debut against Ravens: ‘Rough overall’ Ravens’ Mark Andrews shares name for fake ‘tush push’ play vs. Browns A field goal gave the Browns a 6-3 lead when they should have held a 10-3 advantage. The Browns were gifted a shot at redemption later in that same wacky second quarter. On fourth-and-4, lined up to punt the ball downfield, Jake Hummel goofed. It was another uncharacteristic move from another special teamer who has been a pleasant surprise for these confounding Ravens. Hummel jumped offsides, awarding the Browns a first down near midfield. The home team was in field goal range two plays later. Baltimore again walled up, part of what Hamilton called a “complete product” from the defense, and held the Browns to three points rather than seven. Another instance where the Ravens went down a manageable 16-10 rather than 21-10, on the verge of collapse. “We got thrown into some sticky situations,” Hamilton said. “It doesn’t matter what the situation is in the game, if there’s a blade of grass to defend, we’re going to defend it.” That they did. The Browns finished with 187 yards of total offense. They had 14 third-down tries and converted only two. The Ravens hit Cleveland’s quarterbacks 10 times and brought them to the ground thrice. There were nine pass deflections, six tackles for loss and Wiggins’ third interception of the year. “Didn’t give Shedeur Sanders a chance to breathe really at all,” Harbaugh said. Even when the Browns were forced to switch quarterbacks to the rookie making his NFL debut, linebacker Roquan Smith gathered his teammates to manage emotions. “You want to go out there and just kill,” he told them, according to pass rusher Dre’Mont Jones. They’ve come a long way from the immature group of earlier this year. Browns wide receiver Gage Larvadain and Ravens cornerback Chidobe Awuzie reach for a pass during the second half of Baltimore's narrow win. The Ravens limited the Browns' two rookie quarterbacks to 11-for-26 passing in the victory. (David Richard/AP) Chidobe Awuzie was the cornerback signing the Ravens needed The Ravens brought in two cornerbacks this offseason in an effort to fortify their secondary. One flew under the radar and one made headlines any time he did anything. They quietly signed veteran Chidobe Awuzie in March — meaning there wasn’t much fanfare for a veteran who missed a chunk of last season because of injury and didn’t bring a recognizable name from Tennessee. He was rugged and reliable without a Pro Bowl selection. Then in June, the Ravens loudly signed Jaire Alexander. Jackson had sway in that move, publicly admitting he told general manager Eric DeCosta to “go get” his former college teammate. Alexander was once one of the NFL’s premiere cornerbacks when healthy. The former first-round pick brought two Pro Bowl nods and an infectious energy that left a noticeable imprint on the dog days of training camp. Awuzie and Alexander were inextricably tied together. But Orr downplayed there being competition between the two, explaining that he believed both would play starting reps. And in August, the overwhelming majority saw the job as Alexander’s to lose. Three months later, one has unfortunately stepped away from football to focus on his health after a midseason trade swept him out of Baltimore. The other made a game-saving play in the end zone to hang onto an ugly win in Cleveland and maintain the Ravens’ credibility as a postseason candidate. “How about ‘Chido’s play?” Harbaugh asked proudly. On third-and-5, Sanders eyed the end zone to potentially tie the game in its final two minutes. The ball landed in Gage Larvadain’s hands. For a moment, it felt like every other blown lead setting up a disappointing loss that leaves Ravens fans reeling on social media and in group chats. This one would’ve been particularly gutting if it was one of the NFL’s worst offenses delivering the death knell to Baltimore’s win streak. Awuzie ripped it loose with the back of his forearm, one of three pass deflections. The ball fell to the ground and the game was over a play later. He won’t get the flowers that Andrews does. But in the same way he arrived in Baltimore, Awuzie’s contributions have been quietly overshadowed. Ravens cornerback Chidobe Awuzie, shown before Sunday's win over the Browns, has been one of the NFL's best in coverage this season when healthy. (Kirk Irwin/AP) Since returning from a hamstring injury that sidelined him in Week 4 through the bye week, Awuzie has been Baltimore’s best defensive back in coverage, according to Pro Football Focus. He grades out as the NFL’s fourth best cornerback in coverage among qualified players. “I’ve been real pleased with him,” Orr said last week. “When we first got him way back in the spring, you could see on film, he was a very smart football player, but when you get in a classroom with him, when you get in these walkthroughs with him, and you get on the practice field with him, he understands route concepts. He understands leverages. “What he’s done is he’s helped teach the young corners understand spacing and route concepts and how they can play certain routes. He’s been doing a great job for us this whole year.” Nowhere has that been more clear than the front corner of the end zone Sunday afternoon in Cleveland. Ravens’ heads are ‘just above water’ No matter how ugly the win, the Ravens reached a crucial benchmark. They crawled all the way back to .500. The 1-5 Ravens are behind them. They’re now 5-5, maintaining pace with the Steelers in an arms race for the AFC North staring down a schedule loaded up on crucial divisional games. How does it feel to have made it this far? “It’s better than 1-5, I’ll tell you that,” Henry said. Jackson was asked about the level of belief maintained in the locker room over the past four weeks. Was there always this much confidence? Did doubt ever creep in about the long road ahead? The quarterback offered this season’s overused platitude: “We were trying to be 2-5 at the time, or 3-5.” It worked, now perfect since the bye week. Having beat the Browns improves Baltimore’s playoff odds to 79%, according to The New York Times’ Playoff Simulator. A win next week against the Jets would lift them to B- range. Like any playoff race, they’ll need a hand from another team. In this case, anyone else on Pittsburgh’s schedule. The Bengals fells short Sunday. Steelers quarterback Aaron Rodgers is reportedly believed to have a “slight break” in his non-throwing wrist. The Steelers come to town in early December. Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow is plotting his return. They’re not out of it if he can play. These are all things to consider in the long term. But as Jackson affirmed, they’re not thinking that way. “We’re 5-5,” Harbaugh said. “Our heads are just above water. We’re breathing. We’re not even out of the water.” Have a news tip? Contact Sam Cohn at scohn@baltsun.com, 410-332-6200 and x.com/samdcohn. Ravens wide receiver Zay Flowers, right. attempts to escape the grasp of Browns cornerback Denzel Ward in the first half of Baltimore's 23-16 victory. Flowers led the Ravens with 78 receiving yards. (Sue Ogrocki/AP) View the full article

CLEVELAND — The wind howled, the temperature plunged, and the Ravens walked straight into another afternoon of self-inflicted chaos alongside Lake Erie in downtown Cleveland. Sunday’s divisional contest featuring the Ravens and Browns had all the makings of a traditional AFC North slugfest. Quarterback Lamar Jackson was intercepted twice for the first time in two years. Safety Kyle Hamilton was penalized after kicking a football out of frustration. Rookie LaJohntay Wester gift-wrapped points for Cleveland with his muffed punt return. And the Ravens won anyway. It was a bumpy, twisty roller coaster, but the Ravens willed themselves to a fourth straight victory, grinding out a come-from-behind 23-16 win that pulled Baltimore back to .500 at Huntington Bank Stadium. Sunday was a maddening, emotional viewing experience for everyone involved, including Ravens general manager Eric DeCosta, who was seated alongside other team personnel from the second row of Cleveland’s press box, located several hundred feet above the visitors’ sideline. On a gloomy day when the offense looked stuck, the Ravens muscled through their mistakes and leaned on grit to drag themselves out of an ever-important divisional game to sweep the Browns for the first time since 2020. “By no means is this the end,” coach John Harbaugh said. “We’re 5-5. Our heads are just above water. We’re just above water. We’re breathing. We’re not even out of the water. But what you saw out there was a tough, hard-fought game against a really good team.” Baltimore’s defense didn’t allow a single offensive touchdown, just the latest example of Zach Orr’s unit bandaging the season together while the offense continued to find its way. Browns rookie quarterbacks Dillon Gabriel and Shedeur Sanders combined to complete just 11 of 26 passes for 115 yards with zero touchdowns and one interception. Offensively, Lamar Jackson looked pedestrian against Cleveland’s second-ranked defense. He completed 14 of 25 passes for 193 yards with zero touchdowns and two interceptions. He only rushed four times for 10 yards, while Jackson’s 47.6 passer rating was his lowest since Nov. 28, 2021. Over 53 games during that span, he hadn’t posted a rating in the 40s until Sunday. Still, Baltimore survived. “We can fight through adversity,” Jackson said. “This is divisional game, so we know type of game it’ll be. I guess not with the turnovers and stuff like that, but we knew it was going to be a dog fight. … You just have to keep a clear mind. I wouldn’t say frustration, but you’re kind of ticked off because our defense just put us in a great spot, and then for us to turn the ball back over. We can’t have that.” Related Articles Mike Preston: Ravens bully bad quarterbacks. More are coming. | COMMENTARY The Baltimore Sun’s Ravens report card: Grades for 23-16 win over Browns Shedeur Sanders struggles in NFL debut against Ravens: ‘Rough overall’ Ravens’ Mark Andrews shares name for fake ‘tush push’ play vs. Browns Ravens use surprise play to rally and beat Browns, 23-16, for 4th straight win As much as the offense sputtered, coordinator Todd Monken dialed up his best play call for the game’s most critical moment. Monken’s decision to roll out Mark Andrews on a fake tush push resulted in the go-ahead touchdown score. Following hours of frustration, that single moment of creativity finally sent the visitors’ sideline exploding like a jack-in-the-box children’s toy that finally sprung open. “We knew we won the game after that,” cornerback Nate Wiggins said. Earlier in the season, I hammered the team on their lack of accountability. Once 1-5, the Ravens have rattled off four straight victories, including three on the road, all while displaying their grit and maturation in multiple departments. Baltimore displayed several examples of improved accountability amid the postgame celebration in the visitors’ locker room. Wiggins, already dressed and headed toward the exit once the mandatory “cooling” period concluded, was asked by a team staffer to stay and speak with reporters. The second-year defensive back didn’t complain and returned to the room to discuss the team’s latest victory. Meanwhile, Wester willingly addressed his costly mistake, vowing to remember in the future how much impact he carries with each punt he fields. On the heels of one of his worst performances in several years, Jackson also approached tailback Keaton Mitchell to talk through his incompletion and tipped-ball interception. Those might be small interactions on the surface, but for a team that struggled with accountability earlier this year, the Ravens continue to progress in that department, among others. Ravens running back Derrick Henry, middle, walks off the field Sunday night after beating the Browns in Cleveland. Henry ran for 103 yards in the victory. (Kirk Irwin/AP) Baltimore still trails Pittsburgh by a game in the division, but the Ravens are now halfway to the 10-win mark, widely viewed as the AFC’s playoff entry point. Speaking of the Steelers, the Ravens play their rivals twice over the season’s final five weeks. Their first meeting on Dec. 7 at M&T Bank Stadium is shaping up to be one of the most anticipated games of the year, and Pittsburgh could be without quarterback Aaron Rodgers, who reportedly suffered a broken left wrist in their win over the Bengals. The Ravens might not be winning with style points or full four-quarter performances yet, but they’ve established an important sense of momentum as they enter the final third of the regular season. “We hope that one day — one of these games — the defense is going to go play lights-out, offense is going to play lights-out,” Hamilton said. “But it’s not guaranteed in this league, and it rarely happens. … It doesn’t matter what the situation is in the game, if there’s a blade of grass to defend, we’re going to defend it.” DeCosta, as he always does, joined the team in the visitors’ locker room for Harbaugh’s postgame speech. Before the general manager departed, he found Jackson — still in full pads — and pulled him in for a quick embrace near his stall. It was a brief exchange between the two pillars of a team that keeps dragging itself forward. Sunday wasn’t pretty, but it was progress. It’s OK for the surging Ravens to celebrate that. Have a news tip? Contact Josh Tolentino at jtolentino@baltsun.com, 410-332-6200, x.com/JCTSports and instagram.com/JCTSports. View the full article

CLEVELAND — Now, all those doomsayers who were complaining about the Ravens playing five playoff contenders from 2024 at the beginning of season aren’t critical anymore. The Ravens have now won four straight and are only one game behind the Pittsburgh Steelers for first place in the AFC North. They didn’t get any style points by beating Cleveland, 23-16, on Sunday, but those will come later. That will come in late December or early January, but now it’s about staying in contention and within striking distance of the division leader as the schedule keeps getting weaker. The Browns used two rookie quarterbacks Sunday. The first was Dillon Gabriel, a third-round draft pick out of Oregon, and the other was Shedeur Sanders, the fifth-round selection from Colorado whose father Deion was possibly the best cornerback who ever played in the NFL. Gabriel started the first half, but Sanders played the second after Gabriel failed to clear the NFL’s concussion protocol after taking a hit near the end of the second quarter. Now, if you thought the Ravens were getting a break Sunday, it gets even easier next week when they play the New York Jets at home followed by the Cincinnati Bengals. Oh, and the Ravens still get to face the Steelers twice. Now, that’s either being exceedingly lucky or having the football gods look down and smile all over them. Earlier this season, the Ravens started off 1-5, having suffered major losses to Buffalo, Kansas City, Houston, Detroit and the Los Angeles Rams. And next week the Ravens get to face Jets quarterback Justin Fields, who has a backup named Tyrod Taylor. On Thanksgiving night, the Bengals might start 40-year old Joe Flacco or possibly return star Joe Burrow, who is attempting to rebound from a turf toe injury suffered in Week 2. Pittsburgh quarterback Aaron Rodgers might have suffered a left wrist injury in the Steelers 34-12 win over the Bengals on Sunday, and will be further evaluated Monday. No one wishes bad luck or injuries on other players, but the Ravens are having good fortunes. When they were struggling at the beginning of the season, they had nine players they shuffled in and out of the starting lineups because of injuries, including to quarterback Lamar Jackson, middle linebacker Roquan Smith and left tackle Ronnie Stanley. On Sunday, the Ravens were full of glee. They faced Gabriel, who was making his fifth straight start, and then Sanders, who was playing in his first regular-season game. And the Ravens didn’t care. They never blinked. They harassed Gabriel for most of the first half, and then stepped up the different looks with an assortment of blitzes and five-man rushes on Sanders in the second. Poor Sanders. He looked frazzled, even lost at times. The Ravens finished with three sacks and hurried both Gabriel and Sanders 10 other times. The Jets won’t be much better. Fields was a first-round pick, the 11th player chosen overall in the 2021 draft who played in Chicaho and Pittsburgh before moving to the Jets this season. His backup, Taylor, has more mileage than Air Force One, having played in Baltimore, Buffalo, Cleveland, and Houston in addition to time with the Los Angeles Chargers and both the New York Giants and Jets. Related Articles Josh Tolentino: The Ravens won ugly, and that’s OK | COMMENTARY The Baltimore Sun’s Ravens report card: Grades for 23-16 win over Browns Shedeur Sanders struggles in NFL debut against Ravens: ‘Rough overall’ Ravens’ Mark Andrews shares name for fake ‘tush push’ play vs. Browns Ravens use surprise play to rally and beat Browns, 23-16, for 4th straight win As for Burrow, I really don’t understand why the Bengals would rush him back. After losing to Pittsburgh, they have no shot at making the playoffs. Why now? And then there are the Steelers. They were a source of intrigue at the beginning of the season, but there were always questions about if the 41-year old Rodgers could hold up, especially with Pittsburgh’s offensive line. It all seems to be falling in line. At the beginning of the season, we all wondered what happened to the Ravens. Even though they had a lot of injuries, they didn’t seem to play as hard. But after Sunday, no one can complain anymore about the injuries and the tough schedule. It appears the Ravens can’t get enough of the inexperienced quarterbacks such as J.J. McCarthy, Gabriel and Sanders. Load them up and bring them on. Have a news tip? Contact Mike Preston at epreston@baltsun.com, 410-332-6467 and x.com/MikePrestonSun. View the full article

CLEVELAND — Here’s how the Ravens graded out at every position in their 23-16 win over the Browns: Quarterback Lamar Jackson had a very inconsistent game, maybe his worst in several seasons. He often threw high or behind receivers and was indecisive in the pocket. There were times when he had no touch on the ball, as he finished 14 of 25 passing for 193 yards and had a passer rating of 47.6. He also threw two interceptions, one of which wasn’t his fault. But overall, not a great day for Jackson. This offense needs him to at least perform up to par to have a strong game. Grade: C- Running backs Derrick Henry finished with 103 yards on 18 carries, including a long of 59 yards, but you got the impression that if he didn’t score, the Ravens would have to settle for field goals. Henry was stopped several times on runs inside the 10-yard line, and he certainly doesn’t appear as fast or as fluid as he did a year ago. The Ravens used running back Keaton Mitchell more on running plays and tosses to the outside, and he had six carries for 31 yards. But he has to hang on to the pass that bounced off his hands and resulted in an interception that was returned for a touchdown. Grade: C+ Offensive line The Ravens and the Browns are very much alike. Neither team has a very good offensive line and both can get dominated by athletic defensive lines. The Browns dominated the Ravens with sheer speed as defensive end Myles Garrett had four sacks by himself, and the Browns finished with five. Baltimore was effective, as well as selective, on runs outside the red zone, but the Ravens couldn’t get movement inside the 20-yard line. Jackson was hit on seven other occasions. Grade: C- Receivers Tight end Mark Andrews had the play of the game with his fake “tush push” and run around the right side that sealed the win. The Ravens, though, need to get slot receiver Zay Flowers more involved in the offense because he is such an integral part. He had three catches for 78 yards, including a long of 45. Andrews had three catches for 32 yards, but his 35-yard run with 2:31 left handed Baltimore the win. Grade: C Defensive line The Ravens allowed 106 rushing yards on 25 carries, including 59 to rookie running back Quinshon Judkins, who averaged 3.5 yards per carry. Overall, the Ravens allowed 187 yards of total offense, but that was to a Cleveland team playing two rookie quarterbacks in Shedeur Sanders and starter Dillon Gabriel, who left in the second half because of a concussion. But Cleveland, after most of the first half, had no offense in the final two quarters. A lot of that was because Baltimore dominated up front with John Jenkins, Travis Jones, Brent Urban and even fellow tackle C.J. Okoye. The Ravens got a lot of pressure up the gut as they collected 10 quarterback hurries. Grade: B+ Linebackers The best surprise for the Ravens is that inside linebackers Roquan Smith and rookie Teddye Buchanan have improved in pass coverage. Both were solid in zones, and both came up and made ample tackles. Smith knocked down the fourth-down pass from Sanders to secure the win on Cleveland’s final offensive play. Smith had four tackles and Buchanan finished with three. Outside linebacker Kyle Van Noy had one sack and provided two quarterback pressures. Baltimore brought a lot of pressure against Gabriel and even more on Sanders in the second half. Grade: B+ The Ravens' secondary had a strong performance against the Browns thanks to cornerback Nate Wiggins, left, and safety Kyle Hamilton. (David Richard/AP) Secondary Cornerback Nate Wiggins had Baltimore’s only interception, a misfire by Sanders in the second half, but the Ravens were in control for most of the game, keeping everything in front of them. As usual, safety Kyle Hamilton was the defense’s best player, finishing with nine tackles and one sack. He also had three tackles for loss and knocked down two passes. Fellow safety Alohi Gilman had six tackles, while cornerbacks Chidobe Awuzie and Wiggins combined for nine. The Ravens, though, need to correct their tackling early in games, especially rookie safety Malaki Starks, who needs to learn that he is the last line of defense and can’t allow opposing runners to get to the outside: Grade: B Related Articles Josh Tolentino: The Ravens won ugly, and that’s OK | COMMENTARY Mike Preston: Ravens bully bad quarterbacks. More are coming. | COMMENTARY Shedeur Sanders struggles in NFL debut against Ravens: ‘Rough overall’ Ravens’ Mark Andrews shares name for fake ‘tush push’ play vs. Browns Ravens use surprise play to rally and beat Browns, 23-16, for 4th straight win Special teams Tyler Loop is starting to become automatic with field goals. He hit a 25-yarder in the first quarter and added two more in the pivotal fourth, converting on attempts of 24 and 44 yards. Jordan Stout averaged 44 yards on four punts, including a long of 52 yards. He put two inside the 20-yard line. The Browns did very little on kickoff and punt returns, averaging 25 and 9 yards, respectively. Ravens rookie LaJohntay Wester muffed a punt that led to a Cleveland field goal early in the game and appeared to be confused on when to return punts. Grade: C Coaching As expected, this game was going to be tough because it was against an AFC North rival. The Ravens, though, are living dangerously, and this pace can’t continue even though they now have a .500 record. Offensive coordinator Todd Monken made a great call with the fake tush push to Andrews, but he has several playmakers, such as Flowers and Mitchell, that he can use more frequently. Hopefully, the Ravens can use them more to gain more balance. As for the defense, coordinator Zach Orr kept the pressure on the rookie quarterbacks just as he did a week ago against Minnesota’s J.J. McCarthy. He gave the Browns multiple looks and stayed after the Cleveland offense with an assortment of blitzes. Grade: B Have a news tip? Contact Mike Preston at epreston@baltsun.com, 410-332-6467 and x.com/MikePrestonSun. View the full article

The moment the entire NFL community held its collective breath and anticipated since April finally happened. Shedeur Sanders stepped in as the Browns’ quarterback. What many in Cleveland and around the league waited for turned into a deflating collapse: 13 unanswered Baltimore points, a 4-for-16 performance from Sanders and a potential game-winning drive from the rookie that faltered in Ravens territory. “I don’t think I played good,” Sanders said after the 23-16 loss. “I don’t think I played good at all.” Sanders entered on the Browns’ first drive of the second half with Cleveland leading 16-10 after starter Dillon Gabriel was ruled out with a concussion. With completions of 10 and 25 yards and a 5-yard scramble from Sanders, the Browns reached the Ravens’ 25-yard line with 1:02 remaining, attempting to tie the game with a touchdown. Sanders then went 0-for-3 on his final set of downs, overthrowing an open Isaiah Bond in the end zone and having his final attempt to tight end David Njoku broken up by linebacker Roquan Smith. The former Colorado star passed for 46 yards and added 16 rushing yards on three attempts. The Browns crossed midfield just once out of six drives in the second half. “Shedeur’s made unbelievable strides in the meeting room and on the field,” Browns coach Kevin Stefanski said. “I know he wants to be better and will be better, but that will come from hard work.” Sanders opened his first drive with a 5-yard completion to Cedric Tillman, then found Njoku for 7 yards on second-and-15. But the rookie’s debut jitters showed soon after — safety Kyle Hamilton stripped him on a sack before a Browns lineman recovered the fumble. Hamilton flashed Sanders’ signature watch celebration after the play. Baltimore didn’t have to wait long for its takeaway. On the next series, cornerback Nate Wiggins jumped a ball intended for Jerry Jeudy and picked off Sanders. The rookie got the ball right back moments later, though, when Lamar Jackson threw an interception of his own. Sanders nearly handed it back again on the following drive, with Hamilton breaking on another pass and almost hauling in his second takeaway. The rookie settled in briefly, scrambling 5 yards to move the chains before Keyon Martin dropped him for a drive-ending sack. “We really didn’t give him a chance to breathe at all,” coach John Harbaugh said. “ thought the coverage was really good … Just tight coverage, batting balls and getting [pass breakups].” The Ravens planned to select the former Colorado quarterback in the fifth round with the 141st overall pick before Sanders said that he didn’t want to be on the roster that included a two-time NFL Most Valuable Player in Jackson, according to a September report from ESPN’s Adam Schefter citing anonymous league sources. Schefter noted Sanders’ concerns of not having a viable path to playing time. Three picks later, Cleveland selected Sanders with the 144th overall pick, two rounds after picking Gabriel, a former Oregon quarterback. Sanders declined to comment on the report when Cleveland visited Baltimore on Sept. 14. “My memory don’t even go back that far,” he said. “I don’t remember anything post draft.” Related Articles Josh Tolentino: The Ravens won ugly, and that’s OK | COMMENTARY Mike Preston: Ravens bully bad quarterbacks. More are coming. | COMMENTARY The Baltimore Sun’s Ravens report card: Grades for 23-16 win over Browns Ravens’ Mark Andrews shares name for fake ‘tush push’ play vs. Browns Ravens use surprise play to rally and beat Browns, 23-16, for 4th straight win But his father — NFL Hall of Famer and Colorado coach Deion Sanders — expanded on the topic that month on the “New Heights” podcast with Travis and Jason Kelce, arguing that sitting on the bench isn’t how quarterbacks develop in the NFL. “How in the world can somebody fault him for saying or thinking, ‘Why in the world would I go back up Lamar for 10 more years?’” Deion Sanders said. That moment could have come when Jackson sat out three games in October with a hamstring injury. Cooper Rush, signed in March to a two-year deal, started two of them — both losses — while the offense mustered just 13 combined points and he threw four interceptions. Tyler Huntley started the final game in Jackson’s absence, a 30-16 win over the Bears on Oct. 26, finishing with no turnovers and a passing touchdown. Stefanski acknowledged that Sunday was essentially Sanders’ first real work with the Browns’ starting offense. He confirmed that Sanders hadn’t taken first-team reps in practice, saying that those snaps had to stay with fellow rookie Gabriel. Joe Flacco opened the season as the Browns’ starter before being traded to the Cincinnati Bengals following Joe Burrow’s toe injury. Stefanski acknowledged that there’s naturally an adjustment when a rookie backup is thrown into a game cold, particularly against a defense like Baltimore’s. He added that Sanders will start if Gabriel remains in the concussion protocol, and that the staff would build a game plan around what Sanders is most comfortable with if that scenario plays out. “I think you seen it was just rough overall,” Sanders said. “I got to take this one, I got to decompress … I’m still the same confidence. I’m still me. I’ll never go anywhere.” Whether or not Sanders wanted to end up with the Ravens, it appears that he and his father might have had a point. The hyped and social-media-savvy quarterback might need more time to develop. Have a news tip? Contact Michael Howes at mhowes@baltsun.com, 410-332-6200 and x.com/Mikephowes. View the full article

The Ravens could have drawn the ire of many fans for running the most hated play in football: the “tush push.” Instead, Baltimore faked the run for another — with tight end Mark Andrew scampering 35 yards for the Ravens’ go-ahead score with 2:31 remaining in the fourth. The rushing touchdown was the first of Andrews’ career and came on the day when the tight end passed Derrick Mason for the most receiving yards in franchise history. Andrews lined up under center on fourth-and-1, with Derrick Henry and Patrick Ricard to his left and right, respectively, and Lamar Jackson behind him — typical formation for the push. The 250-pound tight end then spun to his right with blocks from Ricard and Charlie Kolar. He then out-paced Carson Schwesinger to break the 16-16 tie. It was the first time Baltimore led since the first quarter. Shedeur Sanders and the Browns stalled at the Ravens’ 25-yard line on the ensuing drive, sealing Baltimore’s 23-16 win — the team’s fourth straight — and pushing the Ravens to 5-5. The tush push was nearly outlawed this past offseason, with a 22 to 10 vote by the league owners. Two more teams were needed to ban it, with the Ravens one of 10 that voted to keep the play honed by the Philadelphia Eagles. Andrews finished Sunday’s win with three catches for 32 yards, giving him a new franchise record with 5,806 career receiving yards. But his record-setting afternoon will be remembered for the trickery that sealed the game. This article will be updated. Have a news tip? Contact Michael Howes at mhowes@baltsun.com, 410-332-6200 and x.com/Mikephowes. Related Articles Mark Andrews breaks Ravens franchise record for career receiving yards Ravens vs. Browns live updates: Mark Andrews gives Ravens 23-16 lead Ravens could be without one of their top defensive players vs. Browns Ravens’ Ar’Darius Washington eyeing return from torn Achilles ‘soon’ Ravens vs. Browns staff picks: Who will win Sunday in Cleveland? View the full article