MVP SMACKDOWN:

Ravens Win AFC North, Clinch No. 1 Seed

Dec 31, 2023 at 04:12 PM

Hayley Salvatore, The Ravens

The road to the Super Bowl will go through Baltimore.

With a blowout 56-19 win over the Miami Dolphins Sunday at M&T Bank Stadium, the Ravens won the AFC North and clinched the No. 1 seed in the AFC, earning a first-round bye and homefield advantage throughout the playoffs.

It's Baltimore's first division title and first-round playoff bye since 2019, when Jackson was named the unanimous MVP and Head Coach John Harbaugh was named Coach of the Year after a 14-2 season.

That season was cut short with a divisional playoff exit. This time, Lamar Jackson and the Ravens are locked in on going further. Clobbering the Dolphins, who entered the game with the second-best record in the AFC, is a good indication that Baltimore is poised to do so.

The Ravens' championship snaps the Bengals' streak of back-to-back division titles. They were trying to become the first team in history to win the AFC North three-straight times.

The first-round bye will provide the Ravens the opportunity to get their roster healthy and make a deep playoff run. The Ravens were without safety Kyle Hamilton, guard Kevin Zeitler and cornerback Brandon Stephens on Sunday. Cornerback Marlon Humphrey was ruled out of the game in the first half with a calf injury.

It's the Ravens' fifth division title under Head Coach John Harbaugh and the seventh in franchise history.

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