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Ravens stun Browns with TD on blocked field goal

By The Sports Xchange
Baltimore Ravens head coach John Harbaugh. UPI/Kevin Dietsch
Baltimore Ravens head coach John Harbaugh. UPI/Kevin Dietsch | License Photo

CLEVELAND -- Baltimore Ravens safety Will Hill gave up the tying touchdown in the fourth quarter Monday night, but he atoned for that error in a big way.

Hill returned a blocked field goal 64 yards on the final play of regulation, lifting his team to a 33-27 win over the Cleveland Browns.

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The Ravens (4-7), playing with backup quarterback Matt Schaub plus backup running backs Javorius Allen and Terrance West, avenged a 33-30 loss to the Browns on Oct. 11 in Baltimore.

"It was almost a game of redemption," Ravens coach John Harbaugh said. "Will Hill didn't do a very good job in coverage. He got fooled a little bit and gave up a touchdown pass. He comes back, picks it up and runs it in.

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"All the guys on the field-goal-block team set the wall down the sideline. It was a thing of beauty."

The loss was doubly painful for the Browns. Starting quarterback Josh McCown, who missed the two previous games with a rib injury, was knocked out of Monday's game with a collarbone injury in the fourth quarter. Austin Davis replaced him and tied the game, 27-27, on a 42-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Travis Benjamin with 1:47 to play.

"It's a tough one to wrap your brain around," Browns coach Mike Pettine said. "It's frustrating. The guys battled back from some deficits. We didn't finish it."

Cleveland kicker Travis Coons attempted a winning 51-yard field goal on the final play. Defensive end Brent Urban blocked the kick, and Hill scooped it up and sprinted down the left sideline for the touchdown.

"It felt really good coming off my foot," Coons said. "I was really surprised. I don't know if it was me. As soon as it comes off your foot and you hear another thud, that's not a good thing."

The Browns (2-9) took their sixth consecutive loss -- every game since they beat the Ravens. They fell for the 14th time in 16 games dating back to last season.

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Cleveland trailed 17-3 with just under 10 minutes left in the first half before scoring 17 straight points. The Browns took the lead 20-17 on a 52-yard interception return by linebacker Karlos Dansby.

The lead did not last long. The Ravens, mixing run and pass, surged back on top 24-20 with a 12-play, 80-yard drive capped with a 15-yard pass from Schaub to wide receiver Kamar Aiken.

Baltimore kicker Justin Tucker added a 35-yard field goal in the fourth quarter for a seven-point lead before the Davis-to-Benjamin pass tied the score.

Schaub finished 20-for-34 for 232 yards with two touchdown passes and two interceptions.

McCown was 21-for-38 for 212 yards and a touchdown, while Davis completed seven of 10 passes for 77 yards and a score. Neither Cleveland quarterback was intercepted.

The Ravens jumped out to a 7-0 lead on an 82-yard punt return by Kaelin Clay after the Browns' first possession stalled. Baltimore stretched the lead to 10-0 on a 49-yard field goal by Tucker on their second possession.

The Browns cut the lead to 10-3 on a 31-yard field goal by Coons. Schaub needed only three plays to boost the Ravens' lead to 17-3 on a 13-yard touchdown pass to Allen.

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"It was great to show how far preparation can take you," Allen said. "You never know when your time will come. Matt Schaub did a great job. My hat goes off to our offensive line."

The Browns answered by finishing off a nine-play, 69-yard drive when McCown, scrambling and eluding pass rushers, fired a 10-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Marlon Moore to shrink the Ravens' lead to 17-10.

The Browns had a chance to tie the game before halftime but failed to score a touchdown on first-and-goal from the 3-yard line and settled for a 21-yard field goal by Coons.

NOTES: QB Joe Flacco (knee) missed his first game with the Ravens after 137 consecutive starts since being drafted in 2008. ... Baltimore RB Javorius Allen started in place of Justin Forsett, who is out with a broken arm. ... Justin Gilbert made his first start of the season for the Browns at left cornerback. ... Cleveland rookie Cameron Erving started at left guard in place of Joel Bitonio (ankle).

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