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Rookie on the run RB Lewis leads Ravens to 44-7 victory against Browns
Updated: Sunday November 26, 2000 6:23 PM
BALTIMORE (AP) -- On an afternoon in which they set several team records and clinched their first winning season, the Baltimore Ravens had only one lament. Fooled by the Cleveland Browns early in Sunday's game, the Ravens failed to get the record-tying shutout they coveted. Rookie Jamal Lewis ran for 170 yards and two touchdowns, and Trent Dilfer threw for two scores as the Ravens built a 24-point halftime lead en route to a 44-7 victory. Baltimore (9-4) held Cleveland (3-10) to three first downs in the decisive first half, and the 44 points were the team's most in a game since the franchise moved from Cleveland in 1996. The Ravens, whose fourth consecutive win ties a team mark, had never before won more than eight games in a season. "I hope we're not satisfied," safety Rod Woodson said. "But we're heading in the right direction." Baltimore's attempt to tie the 1976 Pittsburgh Steelers' modern-day mark of five shutouts in a season was spoiled on the Browns' initial drive. Cleveland surprised the Ravens by coming out with a spread formation and a no-huddle attack. Doug Pederson began the drive with a 7-yard pass to Kevin Johnson, then immediately threw over the middle to Johnson for 67 yards, the longest play against Baltimore this season.
Another completion moved it to the 4, where Travis Prentice capped the four-play drive with a touchdown run for a 7-0 lead. "That long pass was just missed tackles. After that, everything was back to normal," said middle linebacker Ray Lewis, who had two of the Ravens' six sacks. "The defense didn't feel good about that," Baltimore head coach Brian Billick said. "You could tell when they came to the sideline that it wasn't going to happen again." The Browns covered 86 yards on that drive and gained 26 yards thereafter. Cleveland finished with five first downs and 28 yards rushing on 17 attempts. "I don't think we quit; I think we got beat up," Browns head coach Chris Palmer said. "They physically manhandled us." Baltimore scored on five of its next six possessions and led 31-7 at halftime, outgaining the Browns 306-89 while holding the ball for nearly 21 minutes. Lewis left in the third quarter after getting 30 carries and breaking the Ravens' single-season record for yards rushing. He has 1,095, including 357 in the last two weeks. After falling behind early, the Ravens moved 67 yards in 13 plays and drew even on a 1-yard run by Lewis, only the second first-quarter touchdown against Cleveland this season. Baltimore went up 14-7 early in the second quarter. After Cleveland's Dennis Northcutt fumbled at the end of a punt return, Dilfer ended a 44-yard drive with a 2-yard touchdown pass to Sam Gash. Two minutes later, Dilfer threw a 46-yard TD pass to Patrick Johnson, who separated himself from Anthony Malbrough at the goal line before making the catch. The Ravens moved 69 yards on their next possession before Matt Stover kicked a 39-yard field goal for a 24-7 lead. Cleveland again went three-and-out, and Lewis ran 36 yards for a touchdown. Spergon Wynn took over for Pederson at the start of the second half, but the results were the same. He lost a fumble on his second play, and Baltimore recovered to set up another field goal. "They've done a lot of things to a lot of good defenses. They don't have all those shutouts for nothing," Wynn said. Tony Banks replaced Dilfer with 3:45 left in the third quarter and Baltimore up, 37-7. Dilfer went 12-for-23 for 169 yards and two touchdowns. Ravens cornerback Duane Starks, replacing an injured Jermaine Lewis, returned a punt 47 yards to set up a fourth-quarter touchdown run by Priest Holmes.
Notes: Baltimore has outscored Cleveland 114-26 in winning all four games in two seasons. ... Cleveland DT Orpheus Roye (thumb), DT Mike Thompson (knee) and LB Lenoy Jones (knee) all left with injuries. ... Lewis' two touchdowns matched his total in the Ravens' previous 12 games. ... The Browns' Marty Moore had his first interception since 1997. ... Former Browns and Ravens running back Earnest Byner became the first player placed in the PSINet Stadium Ring of Honor. ... Stover has a career-record 31 field goals, and his last conversion gave him 1,000 career points.
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