CLEVELAND — This season of injury upon injury for the Ravens finally includes a break worth celebrating.
Brent Urban blocked Travis Coons’ field-goal attempt and Will Hill returned it 64 yards for a touchdown as time expired, giving Baltimore a stunning 33-27 win Monday night over the luckless Cleveland Browns, who lost their sixth straight game along with starting quarterback Josh McCown.
Coons lined up to kick a potential game-winning 51-yard field goal with 3 seconds to go for the Browns (2-9), but it was deflected by Urban, who was playing his first NFL game after missing the past two seasons with injuries to his knee and right arm.
“It’s surreal,” said a beaming Urban, a fourth-round pick in 2014 who missed all last season and tore his biceps earlier this year. “After being out so long, it’s crazy. I’m almost speechless. It’s just a wonderful feeling.”
Quarterback Matt Schaub, making his first start since 2013, threw two touchdown passes for the Ravens (4-7), who seem to take every game to the wire. All 11 of their games have been decided by less than eight points.
“One of the greatest football games you’re probably ever going to see in terms of excitement,” said Ravens coach John Harbaugh.
McCown injured his collarbone in the fourth quarter and was replaced by Austin Davis, whose 42-yard TD pass to Travis Benjamin tied it with 1:47 remaining. Benjamin got inside Hill, who spent the waning moments hoping for a chance at redemption.
“I was desperate and frustrated at the same time,” Hill said. “I was praying that we could get a block and it bounced my way and I took it to the end zone.”
The Browns appeared to be in position to pull out a comeback win after cornerback Tramon Williams intercepted Schaub with 50 seconds left at Baltimore’s 46.
But as Cleveland attempted to get closer for Coons, Davis wasted valuable time because of a communication issue with the sideline and the QB couldn’t get out of bounds after a scramble, forcing the Browns to call a timeout.
Coons was 18 for 18 this season, but his kick was low, allowing Urban to get a hand on it. As Hill sprinted down the sideline, Browns fans, some of whom came to the game with brown paper bags over their heads, felt more disgust.
“It’s a tough one to wrap your brain around,” Browns coach Mike Pettine said. “It’s frustrating we didn’t finish it.”
Schaub finished 20 of 34 for 232 yards and his first TDs since Dec. 23, 2013.
McCown, who has played hurt most of this season and was only starting because Johnny Manziel got benched, was 21 of 38 for 212 yards and a TD.
Cleveland linebacker Karlos Dansby picked off Schaub and returned it 52 yards for a TD in the third quarter to give the Browns a 20-17 lead, the first time they’ve been ahead in a game since the first half against Arizona on Nov. 1 — a span of more than 173 minutes.
But they weren’t up for long as Schaub countered with his second scoring pass, a 15-yarder to Kamar Aiken to put the Ravens ahead 24-20 with 5:30 left in the third quarter.
McCown took several hard shots in the second half and went to the sideline in obvious pain. He returned to the field, but dropped to the ground after an incompletion, forcing the Browns to turn to Davis, who made eight starts for St. Louis last season but was getting his first action for Cleveland.
Manziel was benched by Browns coach Mike Pettine after the second-year quarterback broke a promise by going out and partying during Cleveland’s bye week. McCown had missed the past two games with injured ribs, and was expecting to be a backup for the final six games before a video of Manziel holding a champagne bottle and rapping vulgar lyrics surfaced while the team was off.
With Manziel on the sideline and both teams struggling this season, the game was a tough sell to a national TV audience and thousands of Browns fans stayed home as well. A group of disgusted Clevelanders arrived at FirstEnergy Stadium wearing brown paper bags over their heads as another season unravels on the shores of Lake Erie.
For others, it’s time to shift attention to the Cavaliers and NBA superstar LeBron James. A bed sheet hanging in one end zone read: “We Still Have LeBron.”
NOTES: The Ravens have blocked a punt or kick in five straight games. … Javorius Allen, playing in place of injured RB Justin Forsett, had 55 yards on 12 carries and a TD reception. … RB Terrance West, traded by the Browns earlier this season, had 37 yards on seven carries. … The Ravens are missing seven starters due to injuries, six on offense.
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