Browns vs Ravens Week 10: Highlights, score and recap

The Baltimore Ravens improved to 5-4 after beating up on their winless AFC North rival Cleveland Browns, 28-7, on Thursday Night Football. Here are the highlights and key players from the first game of Week 10.

Joe Flacco threw three touchdown passes to blow open a game the Ravens actually trailed at the half. Flacco connected with tight end Darren Waller to put Baltimore ahead for good in the third period.

He followed that with scoring strikes to wide receivers Steve Smith Snr. and Breshad Perriman. While Flacco dominated, the Browns struggled to even keep their quarterbacks upright.

The Ravens swarmed in for four sacks and snatched a pair of interceptions. Both rookie Cody Kessler and veteran Josh McCown were the victims.

Kessler did at least throw Cleveland’s only touchdown of the night. He hit tight end Seth DeValve from 25 yards out in the second quarter, before being benched at the break.

McCown couldn’t spark the Browns’ offense, though. Struggles on that side of the ball left Cleveland’s defense on the field too long. Coordinator Ray Horton’s unit wore down, wasting fine performances from linebackers Jamie Collins and Chris Kirksey.

Highlights

DeVale got the Browns on the board after Justin Tucker had booted the Ravens into an early lead. The Browns’ official Twitter feed relayed the score:

At the time, Cleveland was getting strong contributions on both sides of the ball. In particular, Collins was causing havoc on the blitz, as this sack relayed by SNF on NBC showed:

But the Ravens were hanging tough. Another Tucker field goal closed the gap to one at halftime, before Flacco took over in the third.

He found Waller before hitting Smith on a well-designed shallow cross, per the league’s official Twitter feed:

Then the Ravens’ own pass rush showed Collins and Co. how it’s done. They victimized Cleveland’s youth along the interior O-line:

One man standing out was Terrell Suggs. He made this crucial strip-sack in the fourth quarter:

Suggs was icing a game Perriman had already put away with this 27-yard catch:

Three Stars

1. Joe Flacco

Baltimore’s QB made some mistakes. He missed on 11 of 41 throws and threw a pair of end-zone interceptions.

But for the most part, Flacco found his receivers when he had to. He spread the ball around well, connecting with nine different pass-catchers.

Flacco also responded well to the hurry up pace coordinator Marty Mornhinweg called in the second half. He made quick reads and exploited the holes in Cleveland’s zone coverage with a veteran’s eye for detail.

2. Steve Smith

As well as Flacco played, he was also aided by Smith’s particular brand of toughness and savvy. The 37-year-old hauled in five catches for 60 yards, including his 11-yard touchdown.

Those numbers moved the resourceful Smith up the NFL‘s all-time receiving charts:

3. Jamie Collins

He was on the losing end for a second week in a row, but Cleveland’s newest linebacker caught the eye on Thursday. Collins made nine combined tackles, including seven solo stops.

He also crushed Flacco to offer an emphatic reminder of his threat and skill on the blitz. Based on the showing, Horton and the Browns have an awesome crackerjack set to build their defense around.

Next: NFL Power Rankings: 30 Best QB of All-Time

Next Week

Collins and the Browns will host a bitter AFC North foe, the Pittsburgh Steelers, in Week 11. Meanwhile, the Ravens will be on the road against the red-hot Dallas Cowboys.