Ravens TE Mark Andrews played a major role in huge win over Browns

The Baltimore Ravens’ Monday night matchup with the Cleveland Browns turned out to be a barn burner that went down to the wire and resulted in a dramatic 47-42 victory.

Reigning league MVP Lamar Jackson was dubbed the savior of the day and the season for the Ravens and deservedly so. He was compared to Superman coming in to save the day following the game but if he was the last son of Krypton in this analogy then tight end Mark Andrews was Batman.

Just like the Dark Knight, Andrews came in clutch and aided Jackson when the Ravens needed to make crucial and clutch plays in the passing game at the end of both halves.

He set up Jackson’ second rushing touchdown of the game just before halftime when he found a soft spot in Cleveland’s zone defense down the field and hooked up with his quarterback on a 39-yard catch and run to put the ball at the Browns’ 17-yard line and Ravens took 21-14 lead one play later.

In the final 64 seconds of the game with Baltimore needing just a field goal to pull out the last-minute win, Andrews put on his cape and cowl yet again and connected with Jackson on three of his final four pass attempts including a pair of 14 yarders to start the drive.

His incredibly clutch contributions on the Ravens’ final possession set the table for future Hall of Fame placekicker Justin Tucker, who has drawn comparison to Marvel’s Bobby Drake aka Ice Man, to nail the game-winning field goal for 55-yards out.

“I didn’t expect this game to be the way it was, and that’s the beauty about football,” Andrews said. “You never know what to expect. You’ve just got to go out there and handle the punches – and that’s what this team did. This is going to make us stronger down the road.”

What made every that Andrews was able to do for his team arguably equally as impressive as Jackson and Tucker was the fact that this was his first game back since recovering from COVID-19.

“My emotions are all over the place right now,” Andrews said. “I just feel, first of all, blessed to be able to play this game after two weeks of sitting out and watching this team play. So, it was tough for me to do that. It was just so much fun. All the guys competed. Everyone made plays. Everyone stepped up. It was a team win all around.”

Since he is a Type 1 Diabetic, he was at a higher risk to suffer from lingering complications from contracting the virus, but just like Batman, he showed up and showed out anyway. He opened up about his experience during his time away in his post-game presser and was grateful just to be able to return to the practice field.

“Just aches all over my body, tiredness, headache, all that stuff with COVID,” Andrews said. “It was definitely humbling going through that. It was good that I was able to get a week of practice, get my lungs right, get my body right before this game – and I felt good.”

Andrews praised Jackson for his electrifyingly dynamic playmaking ability and how much he enjoys playing with him since they came into the league together as early-round picks in the 2018 draft.

“He’s playing at an elite level. You look at his completions and the way he’s running the ball, [he’s] the complete package,” Andrews said of Jackson. “Like I said before, it’s a pleasure to be able to play with him. He’s so special in everything that he does. He makes everyone else’s jobs easier.”

While it is true that having a once in a generation talent like Jackson under center makes life much easier for both the offense and defense with the way he can take over and or break open a game almost single-handedly at times with what he can do with both his legs and throwing arm, Andrews also makes his job much easier as his most trusted target in the passing game.

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