MARQUISE BROWN

Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson is inactive for the game against the Chicago Bears because of an illness.

The Cincinnati Bengals won their AFC North showdown against the Baltimore Ravens in style, pulling away in the second half for a 41-17 victory.

Derek Carr threw a 31-yard TD pass to Zay Jones after the Raiders squandered their first possession of overtime, beating the Baltimore Ravens 33-27 in the team’s first game with fans in Las Vegas.

Minnesota Vikings cornerback Patrick Peterson is among the NFL players who took advantage of a rule change allowing more options for jersey numbers this year.

Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson celebrates after the Ravens beat the Tennessee Titans in an NFL wild-card playoff football game Sunday, Jan. 10, 2021, in Nashville, Tenn. (AP Photo/Mark Zaleski)NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Lamar Jackson finally has his first postseason victory — and on the road, no less. Combine that with Baltimore smothering 2,000-yard rusher Derrick Henry, and the Ravens look playoff tough. After the turnover, the Ravens came onto the field and started waving good-bye to the Titans — drawing a taunting penalty they didn't mind at all. “We won the division, hosted a home playoff game,” Titans coach Mike Vrabel said. The Ravens held Tennessee to minus-7 yards in the second quarter, the third fewest in any quarter of a playoff game since the 2000 season.

While the Chiefs get another week’s rest, the six other AFC playoff teams get going this weekend. For just the second time since the 1970 league merger, every team in the AFC playoffs has at least 11 wins. Last Lombardi: Super Bowl 54, 31-20 over the San Francisco 49ers on Feb. 2, 2020, at Miami. Last Lombardi: Super Bowl 43, 27-23 win over the Arizona Cardinals on Feb. 1, 2009, at Tampa, Florida. Their pass rush is nearly nonexistent with 19 sacks, the fewest by a playoff team since Denver had 19 in 1979.

The Baltimore Ravens defense celebrates with cornerback Marcus Peters (24) after he intercepted a pass in the end zone intended for Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver A.J. Green during during the second half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Jan. 3, 2021, in Cincinnati. After a Dec. 2 loss to Pittsburgh with Jackson on the COVID-19 list, the Ravens rebounded and won the next four. UP NEXTThe Ravens advance to the playoffs for the third straight year, will travel to either Tennessee or Indianapolis next weekend. The Bengals end another disappointing year and extend their playoff drought to five seasons.

Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson looks to throw a pass against the New York Giants during the first half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Dec. 27, 2020, in Baltimore. (AP Photo/Nick Wass)BALTIMORE – Lamar Jackson directed four scoring drives during the decisive first half, and the surging Baltimore Ravens beat the New York Giants 27-13 Sunday to gain control of their own fate in the AFC playoff chase. Baltimore's fourth straight victory, combined with Pittsburgh's win over Indianapolis, lifted the Ravens past the Colts in the AFC wild-card hunt. With a victory in Cincinnati next week, the Ravens (10-5) will earn a playoff berth for the third year in a row. The Giants (5-10) lost their third straight and were left with only a miniscule chance of making the postseason.

Head coach Doug Marrone of the Jacksonville Jaguars looks on prior to their game against the Cleveland Browns at TIAA Bank Field on Nov. 29, 2020 in Jacksonville, Florida. “THE New York freaking Jets delivered an early Christmas present to Jacksonville today,” Jacksonville Mayor Lenny Curry posted on Twitter before vowing to light a victory cigar. “Seriously, this Jets win could be a defining moment for our ball club. STOCK UPRookie K’Lavon Chaisson, the 20th overall draft pick in 2020, is showing signs of promise. KEY NUMBER2 — number of games Jacksonville needs to lose to lock up the No.

The Ravens would love to savor the memory of Lamar Jackson coming off the bench to throw a pivotal fourth-down touchdown pass before setting up Justin Tucker for a 55-yard winning field goal. So if the Ravens experience a letdown Sunday against the lowly Jacksonville Jaguars (1-12), then Jackson's heroics in that epic 47-42 win over the Browns could turn out to be meaningless. “These are professional players, and they understand that to make the last win matter, you have to win the next one," Ravens coach John Harbaugh said. “I don’t know if it’s hitting their stride or just really executing on a real high level, both in the run game and in the pass game," coach Doug Marrone said of Baltimore. Rookie Jake Luton started three games while Minshew was out with a thumb injury and Mike Glennon started the following three games.

(AP Photo/Chris Szagola)The NFC East is no longer the laughingstock division in the NFL. In all, NFC East teams have an 8-5 record the past four weeks when playing games outside the division, the most wins of any division in that span. For the season, NFC East teams are 10-23-1 (.309 winning percentage) when playing teams outside the division, the worst in the NFL this season. The NFC East is actually outperforming its mark from last season when its teams went 12-28 outside the division. With two wins in the final six-non division games this season, the NFC East can top that mark.

Cleveland Browns quarterback Baker Mayfield reacts after the Baltimore Ravens defeated the Browns 47-42 during an NFL football game, Monday, Dec. 14, 2020, in Cleveland. But in prime time, on a national stage, the Browns showed they're not the same old Browns. After getting clobbered 38-6 by the Ravens in Week 1, the Browns showed they're a legitimate contender — but that didn't soften the blow for coach Kevin Stefanski. The Browns had just capped a 14-point rally with Mayfield scoring on a 5-yard run to go up 35-34 when Jackson came back. Mayfield showed mental toughness in moving past his first interception after throwing 187 consecutive passes without one.

Tucker, who made 70 straight field goals inside 40 yards before he missed last week, had plenty of distance on his kick to give the Ravens (8-5) a much-needed win. It was a gut punch for the Browns (9-4), who had rallied from a 14-point deficit to take the lead while Jackson was out. He drove the Browns 75 yards, hitting running back Kareem Hunt for a 22-yard TD pass with 1:04 left. Cleveland was counting on Williams to handle the starting cornerback spot opposite Denzel Ward, who missed his third straight game with a calf injury. Browns: Make the first of two straight weekend visits to the New York area and play the Giants on Dec. 20.

(AP Photo/Nick Wass)BALTIMORE – Back in action after a 15-day layoff, Lamar Jackson directed a relentless rushing attack that the Baltimore Ravens hope will be the first big step in a run to the playoffs. The Ravens averaged 7.9 yards per carry and prevailed despite getting only 107 yards passing from Jackson. That led to a Dallas field goal, but Jackson answered with a 37-yard touchdown run on a fourth-and-2 play. Tony Pollard took the subsequent kickoff 66 yards to set up a 13-yard touchdown pass from Dalton to Michael Gallup. An interception by Queen set up a 38-yard touchdown pass from Jackson to Miles Boykin for a 14-10 lead.

Pittsburgh Steelers running back Benny Snell (24) runs away from Baltimore Ravens outside linebacker L.J. So while the Steelers stayed perfect with a disjointed 19-14 win over the undermanned Ravens in the first NFL game on a Wednesday in eight years, their play was anything but. “To be bluntly honest, I’m really disappointed in our performance tonight,” he said after Pittsburgh improved to 11-0. But the Steelers were able to drain the clock behind a third-down grab by James Washington, eliminating the Ravens from repeating as AFC North champions. “The way the game went, obviously we wanted to win,” Griffin said.

Baltimore Ravens defensive end Yannick Ngakoue (91) applies pressure on Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger (7) during the first half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Nov. 1, 2020, in Baltimore. (AP Photo/Nick Wass)

Baltimore Ravens defensive end Yannick Ngakoue (91) applies pressure on Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger (7) during the first half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Nov. 1, 2020, in Baltimore. Ben Roethlisberger threw two second-half touchdowns, and the Steelers beat error-prone Lamar Jackson and the Ravens 28-24 Sunday to match the best start in franchise history. “I put that on me.”Beyond losing ground in the division, Baltimore lost All-Pro left tackle Ronnie Stanley for the season with a severe ankle injury. The Steelers led 28-24 when the Ravens (5-2) faced a fourth-and-3 at the Pittsburgh 8 with 2 minutes left. That left Pittsburgh thin up front after DE Chris Wormley went on IR Saturday.

Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson (8) looks to pass as he is pursued by Cleveland Browns defensive tackle Sheldon Richardson (98), during the first half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Sept. 13, 2020, in Baltimore, MD. Facing a Cleveland secondary depleted by injuries, Jackson completed 20 of 25 passes and racked up a team-high 45 yards on the ground. A year ago, the multi-faceted star set an NFL single-season record for yards rushing by a quarterback and threw 36 TD passes. Browns quarterback Baker Mayfield threw an interception on the opening series, the first of three Browns turnovers. The Browns then withstood a 47-yard completion from Jackson to Marquise Brown by forcing a fumble by Patrick Ricard inside the 10.