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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.
"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.
What we learned about the Ravens:
1. Quarterback Matt Schaub hadn't started a game since 2013, when he was with the Houston Texans, but he proved he is still capable of leading a team to victory. He was far from perfect -- one of his two interceptions was returned 52 yards for a touchdown. However, until the week leading up to the game, he merely watched Joe Flacco practice. He still threw two touchdown passes and completed 20 of 34 passes for 232 yards.
2. The Ravens have excellent special teams. The blocked field goal on the final play of regulation was Baltimore's fifth blocked kick of the season. The 64-yard touchdown return by safety Will Hill off the block was a bonus. The special teams unit then blocked for Hill as though they practiced the play every day. Add to that an 82-yard punt return by Kaelin Clay, who was with the team only two weeks, and it is clear special teams were the difference in the game.
3. Running back Justin Forsett is out for the rest of the year with a broken arm, but the ground game is in good hands with Javorius Allen and Terrance West taking up the slack. The pair combined for 92 yards on 19 carries. Allen was targeted five times and caught four passes, one for a 13-yard touchdown.
Etc.
--WR Kamar Aiken caught six passes for 80 yards and a touchdown against Cleveland. The Ravens are playing without injured WR Steve Smith Sr., and they might have found a suitable target for QB Matt Schaub in the final five games.
--DE Brent Urban blocked the field-goal attempt that would have won the game for the Browns. He was on the Ravens' practice squad until being activated the week leading up to the game. He also had two tackles from scrimmage.
--SS Will Hill not only the winning touchdown by scooping up a blocked field goal and running 64 yards, but he also made six tackles and broke up a pass. The positive plays made up for him giving up a touchdown pass that tied the game in the fourth quarter.
