BALTIMORE >> Lamar Jackson threw two touchdown passes, and the Baltimore Ravens won the AFC North for the second straight season, clinching the division with a 35-10 victory over the Cleveland Browns on Saturday.
The Ravens (12-5) will open the playoffs at home against either the Los Angeles Chargers or Pittsburgh Steelers. Baltimore was two games behind the Steelers in the division before winning its final four to finish on top.
Cleveland (3-14) ended a dreadful season with six straight losses. Both Bailey Zappe and Dorian Thompson-Robinson took snaps at quarterback in the finale. Neither could move the ball much, and Zappe had an interception returned 26 yards for a touchdown by rookie Nate Wiggins for the game’s first points.
The biggest concern coming out of this game for the Ravens was the health of Pro Bowl receiver Zay Flowers, who left in the second quarter with a right knee injury.
Jackson threw TD passes to Mark Andrews in the second quarter and Rashod Bateman in the third, finishing a spectacular statistical season that might be good enough to earn him a third MVP award. Jackson finished the season with 4,172 yards passing, 41 touchdown passes and only four interceptions. He became the first quarterback to reach 4,000 yards passing with 40 TD passes and four or fewer interceptions.
Jackson also finished the season with 915 yards rushing, becoming the first to throw for 4,000 yards and rush for at least 800. His passer rating of 119.6 wasn’t quite enough to break the single-season record of 122.5 held by Aaron Rodgers.
Zappe threw for 170 yards with two interceptions.