Browns Star Wants To Spoil Ravens' AFC North Chances

The Baltimore Ravens face a team with nothing to lose to close the regular season.

Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson (8) narrowly escapes Cleveland Browns defensive end Myles Garrett (95) as he scrambles for yards during the first half of an NFL football game, Monday, Dec. 14, 2020, in Cleveland, Ohio. / Jeff Lange / USA TODAY NETWORK

Entering Saturday's regular season finale, the Baltimore Ravens have everything to play for while their opponent, the Cleveland Browns, has seemingly nothing to play for.

As Baltimore looks to clinch its second-straight AFC North title, Cleveland looks to turn the page on an incredibly disappointing season. The Browns enter this game at 3-13, a precipitous drop from their 11-6 record last season, and a loss to improve their draft positioning may actually be the better outcome in the long run.

Don't tell that to the players, though. Despite the rough season, the Browns are still playing for pride, and they're ready to leave it all out there on Saturday.

Following Sunday's game against the Miami Dolphins, star defensive end Myles Garrett revealed he'll be playing to win against the Ravens.

"I'm not looking into the future," Garrett told reporters. "The next thing on my mind is recovery, looking at film, how can we improve going to the Ravens, trying to play spoiler for them."

A 3-13 team, let alone one that could be down to its fourth starting quarterback of the season, sounds like an easy matchup on paper for the Ravens, but the Browns have given them some problems recently.

Earlier this season, the Browns ended the Ravens' five-game winning streak 29-24 in Cleveland, with Jameis Winston tearing apart the Baltimore secondary for 334 yards and three touchdowns in his first start with the team. Last season, the Browns erased a 14-point fourth-quarter deficit to stun the Ravens 33-31 on a walk-off field goal in Baltimore.

No matter the difference in record, Cleveland almost always gives Baltimore a tough game, and the Ravens are well aware of the challenge ahead.

"It tells you a lot about the character of the teams in this division, so we know we're going to have a tough game," head coach John Harbaugh told reporters Monday. "We always do. We always do against every team in the division. [Against] the Browns, we always have these knockdown, drag outs with [them]. But, if we could get it done, it would be a great accomplishment."

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