CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Baker Mayfield couldn't bear to watch as rookie Greg Joseph stepped up to attempt his 37-yard gamewinning field goal in overtime.



"I turned around last second and saw it was pretty low,'' said Mayfield. "It wasn't a pretty kick, but it went in. This also wasn't a pretty win, but it counts."



Mayfield, who earned his first career victory in his first start at FirstEnergy Stadium, had every reason to be nervous. Ravens' safety Tony Jefferson got his hand on the ball and it barely knuckled over the crossbar with two seconds remaining for a 12-9 OT victory over the Ravens.

"When you hear the sound of your foot and you hear a quick [thud] after it, obviously, it's not always the best result,'' said Joseph. "It was awesome to see it go through and then hear the fans erupt."

It was the Browns' third overtime game this season, but the first one they won. They tied the Steelers and lost to the Raiders.

"I think we like it dramatic,'' said coach Hue Jackson, who won his first AFC North game after going 0-12-1 and got hoisted up off his feet by tight end Orson Charles after the winning kick. "That's for sure. Three overtime games in five games I have not been through that one before. This football team will fight. They'll play. We don't do anything perfectly by any stretch of the imagination, but they work hard. They're becoming something.''

The victory improved the Browns to 2-2-1 and left the Ravens at 3-2. It also snapped the Browns' 18-game winless streak in the division, and marked only the third time 21 games the Ravens lost to the Browns.

It also means they're undefeated in the AFC North, which much now be on high alert for the Browns.

"They should've been on notice from game one,'' said running back Carlos Hyde (17 carries, 63 yards). "We ain't no joke. We're for real around here. We put in hard work, we come to play every Sunday. Take us light if you want to.''

The Ravens, for one, certainly won't.

They came in with the No. 2 defense in the NFL, one that chews up rookies and spits them out, and Mayfield threw for 342 yards on them, second-most by a Browns rookie. Heading in, the Ravens were 15-5 against rookie QBs since 2008, including 7-0 against the Browns.

"That's the first I've heard of that,'' Mayfield said nonchalantly.

The Ravens' offense strutted in at No. 5 in the NFL with 30.8 points per game, and mustered only nine points on the Browns, who held them to 4-of-16 on third down and forced two more takeaways for a total of 15. The Ravens' streak of 13 straight games with at least 20 points was snapped.

And for once, it was the opponent who made a gaffe at the end, and not the Browns. Receiver Michael Crabtree, tightly covered by Jabrill Peppers, dropped a 14-yard pass in the end zone zone with 56 seconds left in regulation, and the Ravens were forced to settle for the gametying field goal.

"I've been there and done that [caught the game winner],'' Crabtree same. "This time around I came up short. I'm a team player. Letting them down, it hurt me.''

The Browns won the game because Mayfield (25-of-43 of 342 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT, 81.7 rating) came through with a clutch drive in overtime, cornerback Denzel Ward blocked a field and had an interception, and Joseph overcame a missed extra point and a missed 55-yard game winning goal attempt at the end of regulation to make the game winner, albeit barely.

Finally, special teams won a game for the Browns instead of losing it.

But it wouldn't have been possible without the never-say-die attitude of Mayfield, who's back was almost literally against the wall before he pulled out some of that Mayfield magic he's known for.

With 2:57 left in the sudden-death part of the 10-minute overtime and the score tied at 9, Mayfield took over at his 16 on his third and likely last chance to pull out the victory. On the opening play, receiver Rod Streater lost 11 yards on a double-reverse to put Mayfield in second and 21 from the 5.

"We were thinking, don't give up a f--g sack for a safety right there,'' said left guard Joel Bitonio.



"Mentally, we were like 'damn, this again?''' said Jarvis Landry.

But the elusive Mayfield scrambled 13 yards to the 18, where he faced a crucial third and 8. To make things even more tense, one of his favorite targets in Rashard Higgins was out of the game with a knee injury. Rolling right to avoid an on-rushing Terrell Suggs, Mayfield hit undrafted rookie receiver Derrick Willies with a short pass to the right, and he raced 39 yards to the Baltimore 43.



"He's a beast,'' Hyde said of Mayfield overcoming second and 21 from his 5. "Easy, he's a beast.''

Under-used Duke Johnson took over from there, running for 15, 5 and 4 yards to the Baltimore 19. When Joseph made the kick, FirstEnergy Stadium erupted in cheers, hugs, high-fives and spilled beer, just like when Mayfield came off the bench to beat the Jets in week three.



"I haven't been around him a ton, but there's just something about this young man,'' said Jackson. "He has a feel to him. He doesn't blink at situations or opportunities. Something might have went wrong the play before, and it's water off of the duck's back to him. He's on to the next play. He is ready. 'Give me the next play and let's go.' That is a good quality to have. He's doing a great job for us."

Mayfield was picked off on his fourth play of the game, and it looked like it might be a long afternoon. But the defense held the Ravens to a field goal and then Ward prevented them from scoring again in the first half with his interception at the 3-yard line, and his blocked 48-yard field goal as time expired in the half. The Browns led 6-3 at the half on Mayfield's 19-yard TD pass to Higgins after Joseph missed the extra point.

"He just makes plays,'' Bitonio said of Mayfield. "He's calm, he's collected, no matter what's happening, a pick, fumble, interception, he's ready to play the next play. He's done that all year and we're hoping he does it for a long, long time here.

"A few times you hear the crowd and you think he's going down and he comes out and makes a play and throws the ball somewhere or escapes. He's just a ballplayer.''



But the victory might not have been possible without Ward's interception and blocked field goal. It was his third pick of the season and he also broke up three passes, including one that got the Raven's off the field on their opening drive.

Thanks in large part to Ward, Flacco (29-of-56 for 298 yards) was held to no TDs and one INT for a 60.0 rating. He came in 14th in the NFL at 96.6. Flacco also lost for only the third time to the Browns in 20 games.

"(Ward) was everywhere,'' said Garrett. "He had a game just like he did in the first game of the season, where he was ball hawking and on top of guys at all times. We have seen this in practice, and we have seen his potential. Now, he is living up to his abilities."

In three appearances, Mayfield has engineered a come-from-behind victory against the Jets, almost beat the Raiders in OT and beat the Ravens.

"Take a lot of pride in that. That shows that we are starting to change the culture around here,'' said Mayfield. "That guys early on thinking in the past that when something bad happens, then you kind of get in the tank a little bit, put their head down, but we have a team right now that is starting to believe in themselves and rightfully so. That was big for us."

Jarvis Landry's NFL record



Landry (5 catches, 69 yards) broke the record for most receptions in his first five season. He now has 429, surpassing Larry Fitzgerald's (426). Behind them are Torry Holt (423) and A.J. Green (415).

Rashard Higgins' MRI

Higgins, who left the game in the fourth quarter with a knee injury, will undergo an MRI today. The Browns already had a workout set up today with former Titans receiver Rishard Matthews.





Next



The Browns host the Chargers Sunday at 1 p.m.



