Gus Edwards rushed for 66 yards and two touchdowns in his return and Justin Tucker kicked three field goals to help the Baltimore Ravens defeat the visiting Cleveland Browns 23-20 on Sunday afternoon.
Justin Houston had two sacks and a forced fumble and Malik Harrison blocked a late field goal for the Ravens (4-3). Lamar Jackson passed for 120 yards and rushed for 59.
Jacoby Brissett passed for 258 yards and Nick Chubb rushed for 91 yards and a touchdown for the Browns (2-5), who outgained Baltimore 336 to 254. Kareem Hunt added a scoring run and David Njoku had seven catches for 71 yards before leaving with an ankle injury.
Cleveland’s Cade York attempted to tie the game with a 60-yard field goal but Harrison deflected it and the Ravens took over with 1:59 remaining. The Browns regained possession with 16 seconds left but couldn’t get into field-goal range.
Edwards ran well in his season debut. He missed all of last season and the first six games of this season while recovering from a major knee injury.
Edwards scored his second touchdown on a fourth-and-1 run to give the Ravens a 20-10 lead with 7:39 left in the third quarter.
Cleveland pulled within seven on York’s 37-yard field goal with 2:40 remaining in the period.
Tucker booted a 55-yard field goal to make the score 23-13 with 11:24 left in the contest.
The Browns pulled within three on Kareem Hunt’s 2-yard run with nine minutes left.
Baltimore looked as if it might seal the outcome but Justice Hill fumbled and Cleveland’s Isaiah Thomas recovered at the Ravens’ 16-yard line with 3:12 to play. The Browns’ ensuing drive ended with the blocked field goal.
The Ravens led 13-10 at the break.
Cleveland opened the game with an 11-play, 75-yard score that was capped by Chubb’s 2-yard run. Brissett completed all five of his passes for 56 yards.
Tucker got the Ravens on the board with a 32-yard field goal with 3:27 left in the opening quarter. York booted one of his own, a 41-yarder, to give the Browns a 10-3 lead with 18 seconds left in the period.
Devin Duvernay’s 46-yard punt return set up Tucker’s 34-yard field goal with 10:05 left in the half. Baltimore moved ahead on Edwards’ 7-yard scoring dash to cap a 10-play, 80-yard drive with 1:57 remaining.
–Field Level Media