Five Things We Learned from the Ravens' 33-30 loss to the Cleveland Browns

You forfeit the right to have hope for your season when you lose to the Cleveland Browns at home, when you allow the unremarkable Josh McCown to throw for 457 yards and move the ball at will in the fourth quarter. When I wrote the Ravens were probably doomed at 0-2 and almost certainly doomed at 0-3, those were arguments of probability as much as football. I still thought they had a chance to be a pretty good team. But after this dispiriting loss to a franchise they’ve always cuffed around like a kid brother, it’s hard to argue the positive signs outweigh the negative. Relentless injuries have reduced the Ravens to using second and third stringers at vital positions on both sides of the ball. They can’t cover good receivers or rush the passer consistently, and Joe Flacco has no consistent big-play threats to target. This was not pretty football. The game descended into a morass of injuries, dunderheaded penalties (12 for 98 yards by the Ravens) and (correctly) challenged calls. Browns tight end Gary Barnidge caught a touchdown pass with his ankles, knees and tush, everything but his hands really. For a minute there, it seemed the Ravens might escape M&T Bank Stadium with a comfortable win. They went up 21-9 midway through the third quarter, and there was little sign the hapless Cleveland defense could stop them from moving the ball. But among its many faults, this Ravens team doesn’t protect leads. “I put this on the defense as a whole,” cornerback Jimmy Smith said. “We didn’t come through today.” Many players echoed his thoughts. As you’d expect, coach John Harbaugh conceded nothing based on the 1-4 start. “We can and we will expect to win the next time we play,” he said. I believe he means it. But it’s not clear he has the team to change course. (Christopher T. Assaf / Baltimore Sun)