The Ravens were held back by mistakes on offense and the special teams throughout the Browns’ Week 11 matchup, but a dominating defensive performance and the ‘Hurricane” carried Baltimore to victory 23-16.

Lamar Jackson was tackled five times, and two of his batted balls were intercepted. One was returned as a touchdown. A muffed punt by the Ravens and an offsides violation gave the Browns two possessions of the ball. Baltimore’s offense only scored once in four trips into the red zone, and in three situations where they had to score. Their defense stayed strong, battened the hatches and kept them in the game.

The Ravens defense, aside from a few missed tackles during the first quarter of the game, kept the Browns under a tight grip for most of the match. The Ravens defense stymied Cleveland’s first eight third-down attempts and only allowed two conversions out of 14 total attempts. Zach Orr, Ravens defensive coordinator, used a variety of blitzes to deliver 10 quarterback hits, 3 sacks and an intentional grounding penalty that ended the drive. Nate Wiggins, cornerback, caught his third interception of the season, and Kyle Hamilton did everything at once, everywhere. He had nine tackles and three tackles for losses, as well as two passes defended, one sack, a forced fumble, and two passes defended.

Baltimore needed all of this effort plus a fake bootleg by Mark Andrews, on 4th and 1, that led to a 35-yard game-winning touchdown with 2:30 remaining in the game.

Batimore’s offense had a few bright spots, including this play. Andrews’ spin and run at the line-of-scrimmage was aptly named ‘Hurricane.’ The veteran tight end’s early reception made him the franchise leader for receiving yards.

The Ravens offense was unable to move forward for most of the afternoon, aside from Andrews, Zay Flowers’ key catches, and Derrick Henry’s 59-yard run. Lamar Jackson was under constant pressure and completed only 14 of 25 passes, resulting in 193 yards with zero touchdowns. He also threw the two interceptions. Keaton Mitchell gained 54 yards in eight touches, but he didn’t manage to gain more than 17 yards. Henry was stopped several times outside of his long run. This included in numerous short-yardage situations and goal-to go situations.

Jake Hummel’s offsides penalty and LaJohntay wester’s muffed punt were the two mistakes that the Ravens punt-return unit made after a couple of excellent weeks in special teams. Jordan Stout punted well, but was not spectacular. However, rookie kicker Tyler Loop made all five of his attempts, including a 45 yard field goal against the wind.

The Ravens’ defense was intent and intense throughout the game, despite their mistakes and missed chances. They stood their ground and forced a field-goal after the Browns had a 1st down due to a muffed punt. After the first quarter, they improved their tackling and stopped the run throughout the rest of game. They pressured Dillon Gabriel for the entire first half and, when he was forced to leave due to concussion, continued the pressure on Shedeur Sander in his NFL debut. Gabriel completed only four of his sixteen passes, resulting in 47 yards and one interception. In retrospect, Gabriel’s performance in the first-half, where he went seven-for-10 for 70 yards, was impressive.

The Ravens’ defense made plays on key downs after key downs, providing the offense with so many chances that they were forced to take one. Mark Andrews was called upon to deliver a 35 yard running touchdown. This could have been his final year playing in purple and gold. The Ravens’ game was not pretty, but that final play was poetic.