In one of the more exciting early games in Week 3, the Ravens took it down to the wire before edging their AFC North rival, a team they have owned over the last 15 years. Cleveland led for much of the second half, but it was the same as it ever was, some fourth-quarter mistakes and sloppiness opening the door on multiple occasions for a Baltimore comeback. Justin Tucker's 32-yarder as time expired made it official, the Ravens leaving the shore of Lake Erie with a 23-21 win.
Ravens vs. Browns final score: 3 things we learned from Baltimore’s last-second win
The Browns still can’t close and fall to 1-2 after letting Baltimore escape with a last-second AFC North victory.
1. Ravens are Bengals' top challenger in AFC North
There’s some talent on the Pittsburgh, Baltimore and Cleveland rosters, but it was hard to see any of them being contenders at the start of the season. The Ravens have plenty of experience winning, but they had the worst run game in the NFL last year and it wasn’t expected to get much better this year. Cincinnati was the heavy favorite to take the division again, but Baltimore pushed the Bengals in Week 1, and then wiped out Pittsburgh in a primetime home opener. Now the Ravens have gone on the road and stolen a crucial division win at a place that looks to be tougher to get wins early this season.
The Baltimore offensive line had trouble with the Browns' pass rush, but in the second half Joe Flacco did enough to get a road victory, completing 19 of 31 attempts for 217 yards and a touchdown. A pretty over-the-top pass to Steve Smith set up a game-winning field goal as time expired. Baltimore is now 2-1 and will host Carolina next week with chance to cap off the opening quarter of the season in perfect position for another postseason run this fall.
2. Lorenzo Taliaferro may be the Ravens' answer at RB
When Ray Rice was cut from the team, most expected Bernard Pierce to be the new No. 1 running back with Justin Forsett helping out as a No. 2. But in Week 3 against the Browns, it was the unknown Lorenzo Taliaferro who carried the load. Pierce was banged up and did not play, but instead of Forsett, it was the fourth-round pick from Coastal Carolina who found running room. At one point in the first half, the Ravens clearly felt they had found a weak point in the Browns' defense and ran it on nine straight plays, marching down the field with Taliaferro doing the work.
Running back is the most unpredictable position in the NFL. Careers are short and turnover is constant. Because he’s a rookie, Taliaferro may be the freshest ball carrier on the roster and the main rusher going forward for a Ravens team that will continue to run the football with Gary Kubiak as offensive coordinator. Taliaferro finished with 18 carries for 91 yards, a 5.1 average.
3. We’re not going to see Johnny for a while
Brian Hoyer was always thought to be a serviceable game manager, but he's now put the Browns in position to win in all three games he's started this year. There have been shaky stretches where the offense has done nothing, but Hoyer's done nothing to give games away and he's done plenty to give the Browns a chance to win. Unless he gets hurt, he's not going to lose the job this year if he keeps playing anything like he has through the first month of the season.
We did, however, have a Johnny sighting on Sunday, and it would have been his biggest play to date. But this bit of Browns trickery was ruled illegal and it was wiped off the board.
Even with this gain nullified, Hoyer finished 19 of 25 for 290 yards and a touchdown. This was without Josh Gordon and Jordan Cameron still not 100 percent. There's no reason to call for the rookie right now, and probably not going to be for the next couple of months.
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