AFC NORTH ROUNDUP: Will any other AFCN team be joining the Bengals in the postseason?

Baltimore Ravens

"We score points, we win the game. Everything else is self-explanatory." – Ravens RB Ray Rice.

Joe Flacco threw touchdown passes of 30 and 7 yards to Todd Heap, but the Ravens couldn’t overcome two touchdowns wiped out by penalties, a dropped TD pass by Derrick Mason and 113 yards in penalties. They could have wrapped up a wild-card spot with a victory and losses by a couple of other contenders, but they now face a win-or-else game at Oakland. "We can’t wait to go get on that plane," Coach John Harbaugh said.

Ray Rice ran for 141 yards to end Pittsburgh’s 33-game streak of not allowing a 100-yard rusher, but Baltimore still lost its fifth game by six points or fewer. The Ravens were repeatedly hurt by their mistakes and penalties during their ninth loss in their last 10 in Pittsburgh, counting the playoffs. A wide-open Mason, their most reliable receiver, dropped a certain touchdown pass in the end zone on the first play of the fourth quarter when the ball clanked off his face mask, preventing the Ravens from going ahead 27-20.

During a testy post-game news conference, Harbaugh wouldn’t blame the disparity in penalties — 113 yards to Pittsburgh’s 20 — or the squandered chances. "You can go to penalties if you want, you can put your finger on whatever you want, but we’re going to Oakland and we’re going to play our hearts out," Harbaugh said.

Baltimore had a chance late, but rookie defensive end Ziggy Hood — who earlier got his first NFL sack – recovered Flacco’s fumble on fourth-and-10 from the Steelers 39 with 2:27 to play. After that, an apparent interception thrown by Roethlisberger was wiped out by an illegal contact penalty on cornerback Frank Walker, and Pittsburgh ran out the clock. Flacco started the second half by hitting Heap for 7 yards to end a 64-yard drive, and Domonique Foxworth’s interception led to Billy Cundiff’s 35-yard field goal and a 20-20 tie. But the Ravens could have had much, much more. Foxworth scored on the interception, only to have Terrell Suggs’ illegal block penalty put the ball back on the Steelers 37. On Baltimore’s next possession, Willis McGahee’s apparent 32-yard TD run was wiped out by a holding call on wide receiver Kelley Washington, and the Ravens punted.

The Ravens are 0-3 in Pittsburgh the last two seasons.

Cincinnati Bengals

"I’m not jumping for joy or glee, just thinking about 15 once that clock hits zero," Bengals receiver Chad Ochocinco said. "That was everybody’s mindset, to go out and win this one for him."

The head coach was dry as he ran off the field after clinching a title — no celebratory sideline dousing. Players’ eyes were dry, too — all the tears had been wrung out. In their finest moment, the Cincinnati Bengals didn’t act like champions. Maybe it was the ugly way they won. Maybe those tearful practices and wrenching eulogies had something to do with it as well. Either way, they were in the playoffs. Carson Palmer’s touchdown pass to Chad Ochocinco completed a 98-yard drive in the closing minutes Sunday, sending Cincinnati to a 17-10 victory over the Kansas City Chiefs that clinched the AFC North title five days after the Bengals buried teammate Chris Henry. The Bengals reached the playoffs for only the second time in the past 19 years after dealing with Henry’s death. His wooden locker stall still has his shoulder pads resting on the top shelf, an assortment of shoes on the bottom rack and his helmet hanging from the side – almost as though he would show up at any moment and suit up.

Given the mood, the Chiefs stayed close in a ragged game against a team finishing a very rough week. The Bengals lost in San Diego on Sunday, had a late flight home then flew to New Orleans on Tuesday to attend Henry’s funeral. The receiver died from injuries suffered during what police describe as a domestic dispute in North Carolina last week. One good drive at the end was enough. Cincinnati took over at its 2-yard line with 9:21 to go and put together its longest drive of the season. On the 14th play, Palmer threw a 6-yard touchdown pass to Ochocinco, who ran to the stands and touched a poster of Henry, pausing for a brief prayer. Fans wearing No. 15 decals chanted "Who Dey!" after Matt Cassel’s final pass was intercepted and a burst of snow fell on a windy, raw afternoon. Palmer threw for a pair of touchdowns, and Cedric Benson ran for 133 yards in an offense that managed only two drives all day.

Cincinnati managed only 53 yards in the first half, with its only points coming off a bizarre play. On a Kansas City punt attempt, the snap flew over Dustin Colquitt’s head and rolled toward the goal line. Colquitt caught up with it and kicked it out of bounds at the 7. Even then, the Bengals couldn’t get into the end zone because of a snafu. Palmer’s apparent 6-yard touchdown pass to Ochocinco was overturned after a review showed he had stepped out of the back of the end zone before the catch. Shayne Graham kicked a 29-yard field goal. Palmer finished 17 of 25 for 139 yards with two touchdowns passing and an interception. Cedric Benson rushed for 133 yards on 29 carries setting a team record with his 6^th 100 yard rushing game. Bengals rookie LB Rey Maualuga broke his left ankle late in the first quarter, a blow to one of the league’s stingiest defenses.

Cleveland Browns

"I’m happy with the way things have been going," Browns Head Coach Eric Mangini said. "I’ve seen progress from the group. It is a process. To see this is a real positive."

Jerome Harrison rushed for 148 yards on 39 carries and the Browns won their third straight, 23-9 over the reckless Oakland Raiders on Sunday, extending a surprising streak that Eric Mangini can use to strengthen his case to convince new Browns boss Mike Holmgren to keep him. With consecutive wins over Pittsburgh, Kansas City and Oakland, the Browns have their first three-game winning streak since 2007 and only their third since 1999. Holmgren, who last week agreed to become Cleveland’s team president, may have to factor Cleveland’s late-season surge into whether he retains Mangini. If the Browns can beat Jacksonville at home next Sunday, they would have their first four-game winning streak in their expansion era. "This shows the character of the guys we have in this locker room," said quarterback Derek Anderson, who finished 8 of 17 for 121 yards with one TD pass and didn’t throw an interception in his first start since Nov. 1. "Nobody is going to quit."

There’s no denying the Browns have improved. They’ve cut down on turnovers, penalties, showed imagination on offense and had backups emerge as playmakers, none more so than Harrison, who followed up a 286-yard game last week by scoring the second time he touched the ball and breaking Lee Suggs’ team mark for attempts. "We see it as we’re moving in the right direction," said Harrison, who was happy to be the workhorse for a second straight week. "If my number is called, I just try to make the best of it, whether it’s running, blocking, catching whatever it may be."

Phil Dawson kicked field goals of 42, 33 and 34 yards for Cleveland. Anderson’s 19-yard TD pass to rookie Mohamed Massaquoi with 18 seconds left before halftime gave the Browns a 17-6 lead, capping a drive in which the Raiders lost their cool. Pro Bowl lineman Richard Seymour was called for unsportsmanlike conduct and cornerback Stanford Routt was flagged for head-butting and ejected. Browns WR Brian Robiskie (ankle) and DE Kenyon Coleman (ankle) were injured and did not return to the game.

Pittsburgh Steelers

"We know our defense has been struggling to stop teams at the end of the game, and this was big for us," Steelers linebacker James Farrior said. "Hopefully it will carry over and we’ll have teams do what need to do and we can get into the dance, because that’s the ultimate goal."

There’s still a tomorrow for the Pittsburgh Steelers, all they could have asked for only days ago. Jeff Reed’s 38-yard field goal put Pittsburgh ahead with 5:25 remaining and the Steelers finally preserved a fourth-quarter lead, beating rival Baltimore 23-20 on Sunday to further jumble the complicated AFC postseason race. The Steelers, their season seemingly ended by a late-season five-game losing streak, followed their last-second 37-36 victory over Green Bay with another tight victory helped by Reed’s three field goals and Rashard Mendenhall’s touchdown run. They could sneak into the playoffs if they win at Miami on Sunday and get some help. "It’s been do or die for us for a while, fighting to the last minute. We’re like the cardiac kids," said Ben Roethlisberger, who threw a touchdown pass while becoming the first Steelers quarterback to pass for 4,000 yards in a season.

The Super Bowl champion Steelers have lost six leads in the final quarter during a season marked by victories over contenders San Diego, Baltimore, Minnesota, Green Bay and Denver, and losses to the Chiefs, Raiders and Browns. This time they closed it out with a scoreless final quarter after giving up a 20-10 lead during the third. Roethlisberger followed his franchise-record 503-yard game against Green Bay by going 17 of 33 for 259 yards, including a 24-yard TD pass to Santonio Holmes that ended a 94-yard drive during the final 2 minutes of the first half. "He (made the wrong adjustment) and I shouldn’t have thrown it, but I did and we scored," Roethlisberger said. "It was completely wrong in every way except we scored a touchdown."

The Steelers have two 1,000-yard receivers (Holmes, Hines Ward), a 1,000-yard rusher and a 4,000-yard passer for the first time. … Pittsburgh went 7-1 at home. … The Steelers allowed 121 points in the final quarter during their first 14 games, second most in the league. … Farrior’s interception in the first quarter was Pittsburgh’s first in seven games.

Pittsburgh     23      Baltimore         20

Cincinnati     17      Kansas City     10

Week #17 Match-ups and ITH Predictions

Baltimore (8-7) at Oakland (5-10)

The Ravens should have beaten an average Steelers team, but mistakes caused them the game. At Heinz Field, the Ravens were flagged 11 times for 113 yards, had 2 TD called back and lost an easy TD on an uncharacteristic dropped ball by Derrick Mason. In their loss at Cleveland the Raiders committed 13 penalties for 126 yards. Who will the zebras target in this match-up of teams that they love to call penalties on?

Baltimore must win to capture a playoff berth. The Raiders have pride on the line and boast wins over playoff teams and contenders including Cincinnati and Philadelphia at home, and Pittsburgh and Denver on the road. However, they have only won 2 of 7 at home in 2009. The Ravens have been solid against teams with losing records, and despite the 5 ½ hour flight to the west coast, the “win and we’re in” playoff berth gives them the edge in what could be a game of survival if they make the mistakes they did at Heinz Field.  

Baltimore   24     Oakland   14

Cincinnati (10-5) at New York Jets (8-7)

This is an intriguing match-up of teams that could very well meet in a play-off game the following week. To further the intrigue, the game is going to be played on Sunday night; after all other league contests are concluded. So, each team will know the exact implication on playoffs and seeding prior to kick-off. It is very likely that both Marvin Lewis and Rex Ryan will manage the situation accordingly, and since the Bengals are assured of a spot in the postseason, you can count on Lewis having a strategy of resting dinged-up players and not showing his hand.

The Jets have won 4 of their last 5 and are the stingiest defense in points allowed in 2009. They have home field advantage and depending upon what occurs earlier in the day, they may need to win to stay playoff bound. That gives them the edge in what could end up resulting in a re-match in Cincinnati next week.

New York Jets   23     Cincinnati   13

Cleveland (4-11) vs. Jacksonville (7-8)

Cleveland closes the season at home looking for their 4^th straight win. The Jaguars are virtually eliminated in the playoff chase having lost 4 of their last 5 including a blow-out loss to the Patriots last Sunday. Cleveland is favored by a field goal and with a red-hot running back in Jerome Harrison on what should be a cold day; they have the edge going in. Unless they can stop the run, the Jaguars won’t be able to win this one.

Cleveland     20     Jacksonville   10  

Pittsburgh (8-7) at Miami (7-8)

The Dolphins comeback effort versus the Texans in a showdown of playoff contenders came up a bit short, leaving them on the outside looking in at the playoffs. The Steelers have escaped with 2 straight wins at Heinz Field and need a win over the Dolphins and some help to get into the post-season. It will be interesting to see how the Dolphins attitude was shaped by last week’s loss to Matt Schaub and the Texans. The Steelers have not been running the ball well, and have eschewed it at times this year. The arm of Ben Roethlisberger has them where they are today. The Dolphins have been up and down all year; and had they beaten the Texans, this match-up would have extra meaning to them. I like the way that they came back, and I expect a big effort against the defending Super Bowl champs.

Record Week #16 (YTD): 2 – 1 (27 – 15)