Rodgers' passes key 38-35 win over New York Giants. San Francisco 49ers, like the Packers, clinch a playoff berth. Arizona Cardinals defeat Dallas Cowboys in overtime.

Associated Press Green Bay's Mason Crosby (2), flanked by teammates Marshall Newhouse (74) and Ryan Taylor (82), after his last-play 30-yard field goal gave the Packers a 38-35 win over the New York Giants.

NFL late afternoon games roundup

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Packers 38, Giants 35

EAST RUTHERFORD, New Jersey -- Aaron Rodgers engineered a last minute drive to set up a 30-yard field goal by Mason Crosby on the final play of regulation and the Green Bay Packers remained undefeated and clinched a playoff berth with a 38-35 victory over the New York Giants.

Rodgers hit three passes of more than 18 yards on the drive in the final 58 seconds as the Super Bowl champion Packers (12-0) won their 18th straight game and handed the Giants (6-6) their fourth straight loss.

New York, which was blown out by New Orleans Monday night, tied the game on a 2-yard Eli Manning touchdown pass and a 2-point conversion run by D.J. Ware with just under a minute to play.

Rodgers completed 28 of 46 passes for 369 yards, four touchdowns and one interception. He threw two TD passes to Donald Driver and one each to Jermichael Finley and Greg Jennings.

Manning finished 23 of 40 for 347 yards and three touchdowns. He threw one interception, and it was returned 38 yards for a touchdown by Packers' linebacker Clay Matthews, giving Green Bay a 14-10 early second-quarter lead.

Nicks caught two Manning touchdown throws. Manning's first scoring pass was for 67 yards to Travis Beckum, giving the Giants a 7-0 lead 96 seconds into the game. 

49ers 26, Rams 0

SAN FRANCISCO, California -- Jim Harbaugh delivered exactly what the San Francisco 49ers hired him for back in January: a playoff berth and NFC West title in his first season running the show. So much for the lockout slowing him down.

Left tackle Joe Staley delivered the celebratory Gatordade dousing on Harbaugh's head in the closing moments of the 49ers' 26-0 win over the St. Louis Rams that wrapped up that long-awaited division title for a once-proud franchise determined to return to the glory days of Jerry Rice and Joe Montana, Steve Young and Roger Craig.

Frank Gore helped run San Francisco (10-2) right into the postseason, becoming the 49ers' career rushing leader by passing late Hall of Famer Joe Perry and finishing with 73 yards.

Alex Smith threw second-half touchdowns of 52 and 56 yards to Michael Crabtree and Kyle Williams and David Akers kicked four field goals to help Harbaugh join George Seifert (1989) and Steve Mariucci (1997) as the only rookie coaches in franchise history to win the division.

The only downer came when star linebacker Patrick Willis left the game in the first half with a right hamstring injury.

Rams quarterback A.J. Feeley struggled in place of injured starter Sam Bradford for the reeling Rams (2-10), who watched several more key players go down.

San Francisco became the NFL's second team to secure a playoff berth behind defending Super Bowl champion Green Bay.

The 49ers bounced back from a discouraging 16-6 loss at Baltimore on Thanksgiving night against the Ravens and Harbaugh's big brother, John, with another methodical victory. Smith was sacked nine times in that game and four more Sunday.

Despite further problems converting in the red zone early, San Francisco shut out an opponent for the first time since a 35-0 home win at Candlestick Park on Oct. 4, 2009. That was also the Rams' last shutout.

The Niners also avenged a late-season loss from 2010 that was still plenty fresh. They had won five straight before losing at St. Louis in the second-to-last week. It was after that game when coach Mike Singletary was fired. That led to the high-profile hiring of Harbaugh in January. And the 49ers' transformation began in earnest.

San Francisco's impressive season might help shed that "NFC Worst" stigma from the West.

Smith, who didn't start that last game against the Rams, completed 17 of 23 passes for 274 yards with four sacks and no interceptions to finish with a career-high 142.3 quarterback rating. He gave way to rookie backup Colin Kaepernick midway through the fourth.

Gore ran for 2 yards early in the second quarter to give him 7,345 career yards rushing, moving him past Perry (7,344) for most in franchise history.

The 28-year-old Gore, a two-time Pro Bowl selection in his seventh NFL season, has said it was a goal for this season to become the career rushing leader — though getting to the playoffs for the first time has always been the top priority.

Same for Smith, Vernon Davis, Willis and all the others who haven't played on the NFL's big stage before.

Gore and his teammates are wearing No. 34 helmet decals this season in honor of Perry, the first player with back-to-back 1,000-yard rushing seasons and nicknamed "The Jet" for his sensational speed. He died in April at age 84.

Willis watched the second half on the sideline in a sweatsuit.

The four-time Pro Bowler landed awkwardly after missing a tackle on fullback Brit Miller, who made an 18-yard completion from A.J. Feeley with 4:28 left in the first quarter. Willis' body twisted as he fell to the ground at Candlestick Park and he stayed down for a short time as trainers ran out to check on him, then helped him limp off the field.

Akers kicked a 36-yard field goal on San Francisco's second possession of the game to go up 3-0 with 4:54 left in the first quarter.

Ray McDonald knocked the ball away from Feeley midway through the second quarter to force a fumble and Aldon Smith recovered deep in St. Louis territory. That gave the 49ers first-and-goal on the 6 but they again failed to get in the end zone, settling for Akers' 19-yard field goal.

Akers booted a 28-yarder 1:41 before halftime for his 31st field goal of the year, topping Jeff Wilkins' single-season franchise mark of 30 he set in 1996.

That gave the 49ers nine field goals — with only three TDs — in the last 14 trips to the red zone before Crabtree's TD catch.

Davis dropped a would-be 40-yard touchdown catch in the end zone late in the second quarter on a perfectly thrown pass from Smith. Davis later had a catch and fumble for San Francisco, which hasn't scored a first-half touchdown since Week 9 at Washington.

Rams DE Chris Long's second-quarter sack on Smith gave him one in six straight games.

Cardinals 19, Cowboys 13 (Overtime)

GLENDALE, Arizona -- Add another excruciating loss for the Dallas Cowboys in the desert.

LaRod Stephens-Howling caught a short pass from Kevin Kolb and zipped 52 yards for a touchdown in overtime to give the Arizona Cardinals a 19-13 victory, snapping the Cowboys' four-game winning streak.

It marked the third time since 2008 that the Cowboys have lost in Arizona in heartbreaking fashion.

Last Christmas, Arizona beat Dallas 27-26 on Jay Feely's 48-yard field goal with 5 seconds to play. In 2008, the Cardinals won in overtime 30-24 on a blocked punt.

Stephens-Howling dodged a host of would-be Cowboys tacklers to scamper in with the score. Kolb completed 16 of 25 passes for 247 yards in his first game in five weeks.

Tony Romo was 28 for 42 for 299 yards for the Cowboys.

Dan Bailey missed a 49-yard field goal at the end of regulation that would have won it for Dallas. His first attempt went through, but the Cowboys called timeout before the play got off. The next try was short and to the left.

Bailey, who also missed a 53-yarder, came in with one miss all season.

Arizona (5-7), which has won four of five, beat a team with a winning record for the first time this season. The Cowboys (7-5) remained alone in first in the NFC East because the New York Giants (6-6) lost to undefeated Green Bay.

Each quarterback was sacked five times.

The Cardinals won the toss and got the ball for the first and only possession in overtime.

Kolb's 16-yard pass to Andre Roberts, who had six catches for 111 yards, advanced the ball to the Dallas 47, but a false start penalty moved it back to the Arizona 48.

On first-and-15, Kolb threw a short swing pass to the 5-foot-7 Stephens-Howling. The play easily got the first down, but the diminutive back stayed on his feet, avoided would-be tacklers and made a couple of nifty cuts en route to the end zone.

Kolb, out with turf toe and bruise on the side of his right foot since Oct. 30, was rusty early, but after halftime, he was 9 of 14 for 203 yards.

Bryant had eight catches for 86 yards but DeMarco Murray managed just 38 yards on 12 carries. Beanie Wells gained 67 yards on 20 attempts, including a 5-yard touchdown run.

Kolb directed a quick six-play, 79-yard touchdown drive early in the fourth quarter to tie it at 13. The big plays were his passes of 40 and 22 yards to Andre Roberts. Wells' TD run up the middle tied it with 13:08 remaining.

The Cardinals had to punt from the end zone late in the game after Early Doucet dropped a third-down pass that would have given Arizona a first down. Bryant returned the punt to the 22, but an illegal block in the back penalty against Orlando Scandrick pushed it back to the Dallas 40. On third-and-11 from the Cardinals 46, Romo threw 15 yards to Bryant to the Arizona 31 as time slipped away. That set up Bailey's missed field goal.

As usual, there was a huge contingent of white-jerseyed Dallas fans, a fact apparent not only from the color of their apparel but from the loudness of the cheering when the Cowboys did something good.

But the team could not cash in on early opportunities.

The Cowboys were in Arizona territory six of the seven times they had the ball in the first half, yet led only 10-3 at the half.

On Dallas' second possession, Bailey tried a 53-yarder, his longest since coming to the NFL, but was wide right, just his second miss in 28 attempts this season. Later in the first half, Bailey's 50-yard attempt bounced off the right upright and through to tie it at 3.

Arizona, meanwhile, was mired in awful field position most of the first half.

An exception came after Dallas' missed field goal. The Cardinals got the ball on their 43. Kolb threw 15 yards to Roberts, then Stephens-Howling ran 15 yards to set Jay Feely's 48-yard field goal that put Arizona up 3-0 with 4:13 left in the third quarter.

Dallas finally got the game's first touchdown late in the first half. DeMarcus Ware's sack sack of the season pinned the Cardinals at their own 2 and Bryant's 14-yard punt return put Dallas at Arizona's 33. Romo found Jason Witten over the middle for 28 yards to the Arizona 5, then Romo threw to a wide-open Bryant for the touchdown. That put Dallas up for good, 10-3 with 3:09 to go.

Each team mounted long drives that resulted in field goals in the third quarter.

Arizona took the second-half kickoff and went 74 yards in 12 plays. Kolb's 3-yard run made it fourth-and-goal inches from the goal line and the Cardinals were going to go for it, but a false start penalty on Brandon Keith moved the ball back to the 6, and Feely's 23-yarder cut it to 10-6.

Dallas followed with a 13-play, 65-yard drive. With the Cowboys having first down on the Arizona 17, Romo was sacked for the fourth time for a 7-yard loss. That led to Bailey's 37-yard field goal that boosted the lead to 13-6 with 34 seconds left in the third quarter.

Listen as The Plain Dealer's Dennis Manoloff and cleveland.com's Joey Morona broke down the Browns' 24-10 loss to the Ravens during the post-game show.

John Kuntz, The Plain DealerListen to the Browns vs. Ravens post-game show.

Listen as The Plain Dealer's Dennis Manoloff and cleveland.com's Joey Morona broke down the Browns' 24-10 loss to the Ravens on the post-game show.

They talked about the team's performance and looked ahead to next week at Pittsburgh

Among the topics discussed:

- Who gets most of the blame for the loss?

- Is this as bad as it was in 1999?

-What grades do Pat Shurmur, Tom Heckert and Mike Holmgren deserve?

- How was Colt McCoy today?

- What's up with Josh Cribbs?

- and a whole lot more!

Click on play on the right to listen or download the MP3 here.

Who's to blame for the loss? Where do they go from here? What's been the most disappointing aspect to the season? Talk about these topics and whatever you like with other fans in our open Browns Fan Chat room. Just remember to play nice with others.

Baltimore Ravens running back Ray Rice (27) breaks free for a 30-yard run against the Cleveland Browns in the first quarter of an NFL football game Sunday, Dec. 4, 2011, in Cleveland. Trailing the play are Cleveland Browns linebacker Chris Gocong (51) and Baltimore Ravens guard Marshal Yanda (73). (AP Photo/Tony Dejak)

The Browns fell to the Ravens, 24-10, on Sunday.  Who's to blame for the loss?  Where do they go from here? What's been the most disappointing aspect to the season?

Talk about these topics and whatever you like with other fans in our open Browns Fan Chat room. Just remember to play nice with others.

Then Monday afternoon, listen and fire away with your questions for Tony Grossi as he'll join us for an audio chat at noon.

Note: To turn off audio alerts, click on round button on bottom left of chat room and click on preferences.

The No. 1 Tigers (13-0) beat the No. 2 Tide, 9-6, in overtime on Nov. 5 at Alabama (11-1) in a Southeastern Conference game. No. 3 Oklahoma State, which was barely edged by Alabama, and No. 4 Stanford, both 11-1, will play in the Fiesta Bowl.

Associated PressAlabama running back Eddie Lacy (42) is tackled by LSU linebacker Karnell Hatcher (37) and tackle Josh Downs (77) during LSU's 9-6 win on Nov. 5 in Alabama. Neither team scored a touchdown.

Play it again, LSU and Alabama.

Alabama's Crimson Tide edged out Oklahoma State in the final round of voting and will play the top-ranked Tigers in an all-SEC BCS national title game on Jan. 9 in New Orleans.

The Cowboys made a late surge by beating Oklahoma 44-10 on Saturday night, and closed the gap between themselves and Alabama in the polls. But it was not enough to avoid the first title game rematch in the 14-year history of the BCS.

 The Tigers (13-0) beat the Tide 9-6 in overtime on Nov. 5 in Tuscaloosa.

Alabama (11-1) finished second in both the Harris and coaches' polls by a wide enough margin to make up for the fact that Oklahoma State was ahead in the computer ratings.

The Cowboys (11-1), champions of the Big 12, will play in the Fiesta Bowl against Stanford (11-1) from the Pac-12.

Even without Ray Lewis, the Ravens' defense dominated an incompetent Browns offense on Sunday.

View full sizeJohn Kuntz, The Plain DealerDespite his enthusiasm on the field, Terrell Suggs declined to show up the Browns after Sunday's thorough victory. "The game was a lot closer than what the score said," he said. "These guys brawl with us. They have a Rocky Balboa-kind of mentality. They're going to go in and brawl with you, and that's exactly what they did."

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Without Ray Lewis, the Baltimore Ravens' defense hold on its No. 3 ranking in the NFL is supposed to be tenuous and fragile. It lacks its leader, its heart and soul, its emotional and vocal linebacker.

But against Colt McCoy and the sluggish Browns on Sunday, it didn't matter that Lewis was on the sideline nursing his injured foot. The Browns were inefficient and inept, gathering just 233 yards in being dominated by the remainder of the Ravens.

The Browns' key players were quiet and overpowered. McCoy was sacked three times, twice by rookie defensive lineman Pernell McPhee. He tossed one interception at the end of the second quarter that came after two near-picks on the same series. He injured his right knee when he was tossed to the ground in the first quarter, though he missed only one play after limping off the field.

After Peyton Hillis began with 24 yards on four carries in Cleveland's first drive, he was stalled for much of the rest of the afternoon, finishing with 45 yards on 12 carries.

In all, the Browns managed just 13 first downs and punted eight times.

"Getting this one without 52 [Lewis] is even more of a blessing," said Ravens running back Ray Rice, who gained 204 yards on the ground. "He gets to watch a young defense, a young linebacker corps, see everybody making plays."

There was McPhee clawing his way past the offensive line. Time and again Browns linemen left him untouched in his pursuit of McCoy.

"They had a lot of missed block assignments and they were letting guys free," McPhee said. "I was one of the wrong guys they let free."

Meanwhile, the Ravens secondary was able to jump many of McCoy's passing routes in pressuring the second-year quarterback.

"We knew we couldn't make it easy for him," Ravens cornerback Lardarius Webb said. "He's a great quarterback and he will make the throw if you give him time. But our D-Line was in his face all night."

Linebacker Terrell Suggs, who sacked McCoy once, called Hillis a "juggernaut" earlier this week, and stuck to that assessment even after stopping the Browns' rushing attack.

"The kid's a really talented running back," Suggs said. "He's always going to be someone we respect. He's a tough back and they're a good offense, they're going to fight. They've got some Pro Bowlers up front, so they're always going to be good. It was just a matter of we had to stop them on third down. That was a big thing, stopping them on third down, no matter what happened on first and second."

The strategy worked as the Browns managed even fewer yards than their season average of 295.9 per game, ranked 29th in the 32-team NFL. But whether out of professional courtesy or honesty, the Ravens contend their dominating performance was somewhat deceptive.

"Don't let that fool you," Suggs said. "The game was a lot closer than what the score said. These guys brawl with us. They have a Rocky Balboa-kind of mentality. They're going to go in and brawl with you, and that's exactly what they did."

It just didn't show up on the scoreboard.

Former Monster Chris Durno scored with 1:33 left to give Charlotte a home win.

CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- Former Monster Chris Durno scored with 1:33 left to give the host Charlotte Checkers a 4-3 win over Lake Erie in American Hockey League play Sunday.

The Monsters (10-11-1-1) had rallied from a 3-1 deficit to tie the game halfway through the third period.

Mike Carman, Hugh Jessiman and Evan Brophey scored for Lake Erie. Jessiman now has goals in five of his past six games and is the team leader with nine. Carman's goal was the Monsters' first shorthanded goal of the season.

Lake Erie goalie Trevor Cann (5-9-0) started his fourth straight game, stopping 32 of 36 shots. The Monsters and Checkers (15-7-1-1) play again Monday night in North Carolina.

It's hard to see where Mike Holmgren's Browns are improved over past regimes, sports columnist Bud Shaw writes.

View full sizeChuck Crow, The Plain DealerIn a stadium that was nearly empty at the finish Sunday evening, a lone fan stayed long enough to make his feelings known after the Browns' lopsided loss to Baltimore.

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Today we attempt to address two questions, which is two more than the Mike Holmgren Era has thus far answered to anyone's satisfaction.

1) Can a squirrel catch a forward pass?

2) Where exactly are the Browns improved over what we've seen under the less-celebrated regimes of seasons past?

This is not the best time to answer "defensive line" -- at least not in the presence of anyone who sat through the rain Sunday and watched Ray Rice -- on behalf of the old Cleveland Browns -- find enough traction for 204 of the Ravens' 290 rushing yards.

In Year Two of The Big Show, the Browns don't have a passing game. Their receivers don't receive. Their best running back probably won't be here next year. Other than lacking talent and speed, they're right there. Their head coach/offensive coordinator looks overmatched on both fronts.

Mike Holmgren's Browns play in front of a vanishing crowd. Fewer people are showing up. The ones who do arrive late. Sunday's arrived unfashionably tardy and left early, staying around just long enough to shower a scampering rodent with cheers as it took a cue from the Ravens and ran for paydirt.

By the end of a 24-10 loss that was much more lopsided, the Browns' game-day scene was as bleak as anything witnessed from 1999 to present. That sounds like ridiculous overstatement given other dark and dreary turns over the years. Except this was Baltimore, remember. Baltimore meant something around here not long ago.

No more.

That's not all on the Holmgren regime. But the hope he represented for a football restoration feels shot through right now.

Sunday fell way short by every possible measurement of civic interest and spirit. From beginning to end, having the hated Ravens in town had the feel of a visit by the Seattle Seahawks or St. Louis Rams.

Asked if he were struck by the sight of a near empty stadium in the fourth quarter, Pat Shurmur said he was "worried about what was happening on the field." Which wasn't much if you came to watch the home team.

The Browns under Holmgren's direction passed on a playmaker at the top of the draft. They have spent two years collecting defensive help. They hired Dick Jauron. And yet the run defense still ranks near the bottom. The NFL in 2011 is a passing league -- except when teams play the Browns and then it's the same as it ever was. Sunday it looked like Jim Brown's NFL but only on one side of the ball.

The Ravens didn't bother to mask their intentions to run, run, run. This wasn't quite Jamal Lewis running for 295 yards in 2003, a game in which the Ravens rushed for 343. It wasn't far removed, though. Sunday produced the most yards rushing against the Browns since Pittsburgh ran for 303 in December 2006.

Pittsburgh. Baltimore. Their dominance is a recurring theme. The Browns never seem to really close the gap on the Ravens and Steelers.

"It's a big gap," Josh Cribbs said, striking a blow for honesty.

Maybe you'd rather hear Colt McCoy go on about the tangible improvements the fans and media just don't see. The quarterback who could not get less help if he were throwing to a street free-agent squirrel said the team wants to take Sunday's last scoring drive and build on it in Pittsburgh Thursday.

Gawd help us. They're paying him for that kind of optimism, so you can't blame him I guess.

Cribbs has seen more in his time. He knows the gantlet of Baltimore, Pittsburgh, Baltimore, Pittsburgh over the season's final five weeks is a growth chart for the team. Sunday's initial measurement suggests the Browns are going to get their lunch money stolen and their heads dunked in the toilet for a while longer.

Young quarterback. New offense. Rookie head coach. No off-season workouts. Those factors had more legitimacy in September than they do in December. This is getting so old everybody is running out of ways to talk about it.

"Let's just keep plowing forward and keep playing football," McCoy said as proof of that. "I know we are getting better. I would never tell you we are taking a step back. I don't feel like that. I see things."

Me, too.

I see a dead football town.

Plain Dealer's Cleveland Browns beat writers Tony Grossi and Mary Kay Cabot analyze the Browns 24 - 10 loss to the Baltimore Ravens Sunday at Cleveland Browns Stadium. Watch video

Bowl game schedule includes no games to be played on New Year's Day, the final Sunday of the NFL regular season. The bowl game tradition, of course, grew with most of the biggest games being played every January 1.

Associated PressOhio University quarterback Tyler Tettleton (4) has passed for 3,070 yards and 26 touchdowns and rushed for 627 yards and nine touchdowns this season for the Bobcats, who will play Utah State in the Idaho Potato Bowl in Boise on Dec. 17.

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- The 35-game college football bowl schedule includes four games featuring teams from Ohio.

The 35th and last game, of course, will be the BCS National Championship Game between LSU (13-0) and Alabama (11-1) on Jan. 9 in New Orleans, Louisiana.

(Complete bowl game schedule with links to each team)

Ohio University (9-4) will be the first team from the Buckeye State to play. The Bobcats meet Utah State (7-5) on Dec. 17 in the Idaho Potato Bowl in Boise, Idaho.

Toledo (8-4) will play Air Force (7-5) on Dec. 28 in the Military Bowl in Washington, D.C.

Cincinnati (9-3) and Vanderbilt (6-6) meet in the Liberty Bowl in Memphis, Tennessee on Dec. 31.

Ohio State (6-6), which will be coached by interim coach Luke Fickell, plays Florida (6-6) in the Gator Bowl on Jan. 2 in Jacksonville, Florida.

The Plain Dealer's Doug Lesmerises writes about the Ohio State-Florida matchup. The Buckeyes, of course, have hired Urban Meyer as their new coach. Meyer coached Florida from 2005-10, leading the Gators to national championships in the 2006 and 2008 seasons.

A quirk in this year's bowl game schedule: No bowl games will be played on New Year's Day, the final Sunday of the NFL regular season. The bowl game tradition, of course, grew with most of the biggest games being played every January 1.

"We got slaughtered," said defensive lineman Scott Paxson. "They kicked our butt up front. We've just got to swallow it and move on."

View full sizeJohn Kuntz, The Plain Dealer"We got slaughtered," Browns defensive lineman Scott Paxson said of Baltimore's ground game led by the 204-yard effort of Ray Rice. "They kicked our butt up front."

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- The Browns knew it was going to be a long afternoon when Ray Rice gashed them for 30 yards on his first play of the game. They didn't know it was going to be this humiliating or embarrassing.

By the end of the first quarter, he had 75 yards. By the end of the half, 107. By the end of the game, a career-high 204. By then, the Browns were soggy, beaten up and red in the face.

"We got slaughtered," said defensive lineman Scott Paxson. "They kicked our butt up front. We've just got to swallow it and move on."

Rice became the first player to rush for 200 yards against the Browns since Pittsburgh's Willie Parker gained 223 on Dec. 7, 2006. The team's 290 rushing yards were the most against the Browns since they surrendered 303 vs. the Steelers that day.

"They just flat out whupped us up front," said linebacker D'Qwell Jackson. "It wasn't anything special. The front line, the defensive line, the linebackers, we didn't get it done. They embarrassed us."

Rice opened the scoring with a 6-yard TD run at the start of the second quarter and then stuck the dagger in with a 67-yard blast to the Browns' 6 just after Cleveland had pulled to within 10-3 in the third quarter. That set up a Ricky Williams TD that increased the Ravens' lead to 17-3.

"I missed that tackle," said safety Mike Adams, who played with a shoulder injury. "I could've made that tackle, coming down wide open. I want to see where my angle was."

The defense stopped Rice for no gain on fourth and 1 on the Ravens' first drive. Chris Gocong and Phil Taylor got credit, but Jackson looked to be there, too. But the floodgates re-opened on the next drive when Rice pumped out runs of seven, 14 and 10 yards on the first three plays. He wound up with 48 on that drive alone, including the 6-yard score.

"It was a slap in the face today," said Jackson. "A lot of guys put a lot of time into it and to give up that many yards -- Ray is an extremely talented back and they have a good team. They came to play tonight and we had no answer for it.

"It wasn't complicated runs, but we just couldn't get off blocks and we weren't making enough plays. I just want the guys to know that this is not acceptable at all."

The Ravens' dominance spoiled spirited efforts on the parts of rookie Jabaal Sheard and Paxson. Sheard had strip-sack for the third game and a tackle for a loss, and Paxson forced and recovered a fumble, but it was reversed.

"I've just got to find a way to make better plays," Sheard said. "I missed a few plays out there."

Said Paxson: "We knew coming in that Ray Rice was their stud. We knew that not only did he run the ball out of the backfield, but he was a check-down guy, a screen guy. We did know that, but we couldn't stop it."

That's because Rice hit the rewind button at halftime.

"I knew I was over 100 yards at halftime," he said. "Coach [Wilbert] Montgomery said 'you know what, let's start all over.' So when I came back out, I had a carry for nine or 10 yards. I came back to the sideline and he said 'you got ten yards', meaning that we started all over again because it was a new half.

"Once he knew I was getting closer to that 200-yard mark, he did let me know when I needed like four yards. I was like 'I need to get these four yards before it eats me alive.'"

When the game was briefly close in the third quarter, Rice knew another big play was needed.

"We had to make a play then and there," he said. "Then we were up by two scores. That's the difference. That was the turning point in the game."

On Twitter: @marykaycabot

Josh Cribbs didn't have any of Colt McCoy's 36 passes thrown his way Sunday. Watch video

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Josh Cribbs admitted it's tough to deal with not having a chance to do more on offense.

A week after expressing frustration over losing and mentioning his limited opportunities, Cribbs had none of Colt McCoy's 36 passes thrown his way. On a day when receivers dropped at least four passes, Cribbs didn't have a chance to catch one.

On a day when the Browns scored only three points until late in the fourth quarter, he was persona non grata in the passing game. How tough is that?

"It's extremely difficult," he said. "It's very difficult to cope with. After every game I look at myself in the mirror and see if I did everything I can to help my team win a game. It's very hard to cope not being able to control anything or being in a position to create a difference."

But he said he didn't think his absence in the receiving column had anything to do with last Sunday's venting in Cincinnati.

"What did I say?" said Cribbs. "I think I spoke for everybody. Everybody's tired of losing."

Coach Pat Shurmur said Cribbs was involved a lot in other ways.

"I'll have to go back and look at the reps," he said. "He played plenty. Just remember, when we talk about production, just make sure when we're talking about this is the time where everybody starts talking about who produced and who played and all that stuff.

"You can play in the game, not get production and make a contribution. He did a lot on special teams, he played on offense and I think that he contributed."

Before the game, Cribbs visited with a group of tailgaters near the lakefront.

"I just wanted to show some love to the fans," he said. "I talk to the fans all the time. I told the fans I appreciate them coming out to the game. It was very tough to see the stadium so empty, but I understand."

A brief absence: McCoy suffered a right knee injury when 313-pound Arthur Jones fell on it in the first quarter, but after some sideline attention, he was back in the game. He missed only one play.

"It's okay," he said. "I just got stunned a little bit. It definitely didn't affect me. We'll check it out tomorrow and see. I think I'm going to be alright, honestly."

Back on the sidelines: Peyton Hillis was on the sidelines late in the game, at times having his hamstring stretched by trainers. But Shurmur said Hillis isn't having problems with the hamstring that caused him to miss five games.

"I think he's just sore," said Shurmur.

A quiet day: Montario Hardesty played only three snaps, in part because the Browns hope to use him more in the backfield against Pittsburgh on Thursday night.

"He's going to be okay, he's fine," said Shurmur. "We could've used him today. With a short turnaround here, it might have been smart to keep him ready for Thursday."

Hardesty hoped to play more.

"I was fine. I was ready to play," he said. "I really can't control it. I can just control what happens when I'm in there."

One of those oops moments: Evan Moore dropped a potential TD pass in the third quarter. The Browns had to settle for a field goal.

"I've got to make those plays. There is no question," he said. "It would have made it 10-7, which is much better than 10-3. I have no excuses."

He rejected the idea that a lack of passes thrown his way this season was a contributing factor.

"When you're wide open in the end zone and the ball is right in your hands, you have to catch the ball. I don't care if I hadn't played one play all year. You have to catch the ball and make it 10-7 instead of 10-3. That's on me."

Late in the game, McCoy went back to Moore for a 22-yard TD pass.

"I ... told [McCoy] that I appreciated that he put faith back in me by making that throw at the end of the game and what happened in the third quarter won't happen again," he said.

Making some plays: Jabaal Sheard had his third strip-sack in as many weeks, leading to Phil Dawson's field goal.

"It was just great coverage downfield," he said. "[Joe Flacco] held the ball long, and they had him contained. I just kept working to get there."

Sheard recorded a career-high nine tackles, one sack and one forced fumble. He has a team-leading 5.5 sacks, tying Chip Banks (1982) for the third-most by a Browns rookie in a season since sacks became an official statistic in 1982. Sheard has a team-best five forced fumbles this year, which are the most by any Cleveland player since the club returned in 1999.

Entering the game, Sheard was tied for second in the NFL with four forced fumbles. Sheard is the first Brown to record a sack in three straight games since Kamerion Wimbley in 2009 and first Browns rookie to register a sack in three straight since Alex Hall in 2008.

On Twitter: @marykaycabot

Browns are 4-8. Steelers are 9-3 and tied with Baltimore for first in the AFC North.

Joshua Gunter, The Plain DealerPittsburgh wide receiver Mike Wallace (17) runs into the end zone to cheering Steelers fans as the Browns' Joe Haden (23) and T.J. Ward (43) end their chase. Pittsburgh won the game at Browns Stadium, 41-9, on Jan. 2, 2011.

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- The Cleveland Browns visit the Pittsburgh Steelers on Thursday night, an AFC North game to be televised by the NFL Network.

The teams, not surprisingly, have been rapidly moving in opposite directions for more than two months.

Cleveland and Pittsburgh were both 2-1 after their Sept 25 games. Since then, the Browns have lost seven of nine to slide to 4-8 and last in the North Division. Meanwhile, the Steelers, after a 35-7 season-opening loss to the Baltimore Ravens, have won 9 of 11 games and are tied with Baltimore for the division lead with a 9-3 record.

The much-ballyhooed rivalry between the Browns and Steelers has seldom amounted to much in the sense that the teams have rarely been good at the same time.

The Browns have won 56 regular season games and the Steelers have won 60 in the series that began when Cleveland joined the NFL in 1950. Pittsburgh has won both playoff games between the teams.

The series has hardly ever been played on even terms.

The Browns won their first eight games against Pittsburgh and, following a later streak of seven straight wins, the Browns had won 32 games total against the Steelers and lost nine.

Pittsburgh then won 20 of its next 26 games against Cleveland, including winning streaks of five and six games.

Then, the teams split their next eight meetings. The Browns lost their last six games to the Steelers before owner Art Modell moved the Browns to Baltimore following the 1995 season.

Included in the six-game skid was a 29-9 Browns' loss to the Steelers in a second-round AFC playoff game on Jan. 7, 1995 at Pittsburgh, as The Plain Dealer's Mary Kay Cabot reported in her game story. The story is included in cleveland.com's Browns history database, which includes the Plain Dealer game stories on every regular season and playoff game in Browns history.

Here is the first of five pages of links to Plain Dealer stories on every Browns-Steelers game since 1950.

The Browns' first game after returning to the NFL as an expansion team was against the Steelers on Sept. 12, 1999, in the new Browns Stadium. The Plain Dealer's Tony Grossi wrote about the Browns' 43-0 loss to the Steelers.

Remarkably, the Browns then won their next two games against Pittsburgh. The Steelers then won six in a row before one Browns' win, and then Pittsburgh ran off a 12-game winning streak against Cleveland.

Included in Cleveland's six-game slide was a 36-33 wild card playoff loss at Pittsburgh on Jan. 5, 2003. Tony Grossi wrote about the game during which the Browns surrendered a 24-7 third quarter lead and a late 33-21 lead.

The Browns ended their 12-game losing streak to Pittsburgh on Dec. 10, 2009, in Cleveland. As Tony Grossi wrote, the Browns upset the Steelers, 13-6, virtually ending Pittsburgh's hopes of successfully defending its Super Bowl championship.

Pittsburgh beat Cleveland in both games last season.

Besides Thursday night's game, the Browns will close out their season when they host the likely playoff-bound Steelers on New Year's Day.

LSU probably should just be declared the national champion now, but instead will get a rematch with Alabama on Jan. 9.

View full sizeButch Dill, Associated PressAnother head-knocking defensive struggle to decide the still-somewhat mythical national champion? Doug Lesmerises isn't exactly counting the days to the LSU-Alabama rematch.

COLUMBUS, Ohio -- Louisiana State is the 2011 national champion of college football!

Drop some confetti on Les Miles and his players and send every team off on a vacation to play a fun exhibition game in a month or so.

Forget any discussion about the bowl system vs. a playoff. That end-it-now solution makes the most sense for 13-0 LSU, the only undefeated team in the nation and the first to get a perfect BCS score, with every first-place ballot from all 174 human voters and the top ranking from all six computers.

What actually happened is that No. 1 LSU (13-0) and No. 2 Alabama (11-1) will play again in the BCS National Championship in New Orleans on Jan. 9, taking a second shot at LSU's 9-6 overtime win over the Crimson Tide on Nov. 5. But when I asked Miles on a conference call Sunday night about just calling it a season and handing the Tigers the trophy, he at least got the thinking.

"That would disappoint the team I have here. This team loves to play on the big stage. They want to play in the national championship in that dome with the lights on," Miles said. "I do understand what you're saying, but we are very much looking forward to playing in New Orleans in the national championship."

No. 3 Oklahoma State (11-1) would have been looking forward to it as well, but the Cowboys instead will face No. 4 Stanford (11-1) in the Fiesta Bowl, "but I don't think anybody in our position could say that they don't have some disappointment to not have the opportunity to play for it all," Cowboys coach Mike Gundy said.

Even Alabama coach Nick Saban agreed with that.

"Oklahoma State has a really, really good football team, and may be deserving," Saban said. "I'm sure if we were in their spot we would be disappointed, and I understand that. But it's the system we have.

"Rather than rehash the system, maybe we should do research on what would make the system better in the future."

Research seems to say some kind of playoff, be it four teams or eight or whatever. Some years the BCS makes a perfect 1-2 matchup. Some years, like this one, it can't. Alabama certainly isn't a bad choice, but the setup makes it difficult to make a truly right choice.

Behind LSU, five teams finished with one loss: Alabama, Oklahoma State, Stanford, No. 7 Boise State and No. 19 Houston.

The final BCS rating for the Crimson Tide was .9419, for Oklahoma State .9333, the closest finish in the eight years of the current BCS system. Among the six computers, Oklahoma State was second four times and third twice. Alabama was second twice and third four times. So the voters put the Crimson Tide over the edge.

In the Harris Poll, Alabama had a 69-point edge, 2,723 points to 2,654. In the coaches poll, it was a 32-point margin, 1,399 to 1,367.

So we get a guaranteed sixth straight national champion from the SEC, joining the Florida, LSU, Florida, Alabama, Auburn run that started with the 2006 season. If Alabama wins, after losing at home to LSU, to get a 1-1 season split, there may be a little controversy.

But Saban, while clearly admitting this system isn't perfect, doesn't think there would be any confusion. He used the example of a Super Bowl champion losing to a team in the regular season, then winning the Super Bowl. (While leaving out the point that the Super Bowl win would come at the conclusion of a true playoff.)

"That's what this is, it's a national championship game," Saban said. "LSU beat us and they won the SEC championship and this is a completely different venue ... and these are the two best teams playing again for the national championship and I think whoever wins this game would be viewed as the national champion."

Other BCS notes: Michigan did what it needed to do, finishing in the top 14 of the final BCS standings, at No. 13, to be eligible for the at-large bid it got to the Sugar Bowl. This is the seventh straight season the Big Ten has been given a second BCS bid. ... Of the top 14 BCS teams, six did not make BCS bowls: No. 6 Arkansas (not eligible as the third SEC team), No. 7 Boise State, No. 8 Kansas State, No. 9 South Carolina (also not eligible as additional SEC team), No. 12 Baylor and No. 14 Oklahoma.

Oklahoma State earned a No. 2 nod from this AP voter.

View full sizeTom Fox, Dallas Morning NewsJeremy Smith and Oklahoma State soared throughout the Cowboys' dismantling of Oklahoma on Saturday, and that changed Doug Lesmerises' opinion in his final AP poll.

COLUMBUS, Ohio -- It was the last ballot of the regular season, with a switch near the top.

1. LSU; 2. Oklahoma State; 3. Alabama; 4. Stanford; 5. Arkansas; 6. USC; 7. Oregon; 8. Wisconsin; 9. Boise State; 10. Clemson; 11. Michigan State; 12. Virginia Tech; 13. Houston; 14. Michigan; 15. South Carolina; 16. Georgia; 17. Kansas State; 18. Baylor; 19. TCU; 20. Southern Miss; 21. Oklahoma; 22. West Virginia; 23. Nebraska; 24. Penn State; 25. Arkansas State

• I was one of the flip-floppers, moving Oklahoma State up to No. 2 on my final ballot after having Alabama there last week and actually having the Cowboys at No. 4. Oklahoma State's 34-point win over Oklahoma on Saturday was that impressive to me, and I preferred, in the final evaluation, to compare good wins rather than the quality of each team's one loss. Alabama lost in overtime, at home, to No. 1 LSU, while Oklahoma State lost, on the road, in overtime to 6-6 Iowa State.

Oklahoma State beat four teams ranked in the top 25 of the final BCS rankings -- No. 8 Kansas State, No. 12 Baylor, No. 14 Oklahoma and No. 24 Texas. Alabama beat two teams -- No. 6 Arkansas and No. 22 Penn State.

Talk about the strength of the SEC all you want, and the 38-14 win over Arkansas was impressive, but Alabama didn't play the two best teams -- No. 9 South Carolina and No. 16 Georgia -- in the SEC East. This year, beating Auburn, Florida, Vanderbilt, Tennessee and Mississippi State, all teams that finished between 7-5 and 5-7, just wasn't all that staggering. Both teams are much better on one side of the ball than the other, and I don't know who would win on a neutral field, but given the resumes, I'll take the Cowboys.

• This drives me nuts every year. Michigan State beat Michigan head-to-head and therefore won Michigan's division, earning the right to represent the Legends Division in the Big Ten Championship. In that game, the Spartans nearly won, before losing, 42-39, to Wisconsin, and then finished 10-3 with the loss. Michigan stayed at home and finished 10-2. But because the Spartans earned the right to lose one more game, they now dropped behind Michigan in the final BCS rankings at No. 17 while Michigan finished No. 13. On my ballot, the Spartans held their No. 11 ranking and Michigan was No. 14.

• In a complicated season, I don't know that I've been a very good voter at times. The need for a ballot by noon on Sunday continues to vex me, and I believe it prevents the AP poll from getting the most educated ballots it possibly could. Or maybe I'm just making excuses for myself. Regardless, I broke another of my principles on my final ballot, putting 10-3 Clemson ahead of 10-2 South Carolina, even though the Gamecocks beat Clemson on the field two weeks ago.

In my attempt to give Clemson credit to beating Virginia Tech for a second time this season while winning the ACC Championship Game, I sailed Clemson to No. 10, had Virginia Tech at No. 12 and South Carolina at No. 15. To be fair, my order of those teams should have been South Carolina, Clemson, Virginia Tech. In the final BCS standings, it went South Carolina No. 9, Virginia Tech No. 11 and Clemson No. 15.

Bowl games have not been good to the MAC in recent years. While the league has sent 19 teams to bowls between 2007-10, the conference has only won three.

View full sizeCarlos Osorio, Associated PressChandler Harnish and the Mid-American Conference champion Northern Illinois Huskies will play Arkansas State in the GoDaddy.com Bowl on Jan. 8 in Mobile, Ala.

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- The Mid-American Conference announced five college football bowl pairings Sunday evening, matching its high for invitations achieved in 2004, 2008 and 2009.

Conference champion Northern Illinois (10-3) will play Arkansas State (10-2) in the GoDaddy.com Bowl in Mobile, Ala., on Jan. 8; Western Michigan (7-5) will play Purdue (6-6) in the Little Caesars Bowl in Detroit on Dec. 27; MAC East champion Ohio (9-4) will play Utah State (7-5) in the Famous Idaho Potato Bowl in Boise, Idaho, on Dec. 17; Toledo (8-4) will play Air Force (7-5) in the Military Bowl in Washington, D.C., on Dec. 28; and Temple (8-4) will play Wyoming (8-4) in the New Mexico Bowl on Dec. 17.

"A good day, but there were a lot of moving parts," MAC Commissioner Jon Steinbrecher said when the pairings were announced. "We've got really attractive matchups. A nice array of opponents. I'm looking forward to seeing our teams compete."

The one surprise was no MAC team going to San Francisco in the Kraft Fight Hunger Bowl, as the MAC had a secondary tie-in there.

"We agreed to trade our slot there to go to the Military Bowl," Steinbrecher said. "It was our decision. If we were in San Francisco, it would have been against a 6-7 UCLA team. In Washington D.C., our fans are closer. We came out ahead on that."

Bowl games have not been good to the MAC in recent years. While the league has sent 19 teams to bowls between 2007-10, the conference has only won three games, all coming at the end of the 2010 season.

Left out: Ball State was bowl eligible at 6-6, but was not invited to a game. Eastern Michigan also finished 6-6, but couldn't count both of its victories over Football Championship Subdivision teams, leaving them with only five countable wins.

Search party: The early favorite as the next head coach of the Akron Zips, Paul Winters, has his Wayne State team advancing in the NCAA Division II playoffs. The Warriors won their third straight road game, 31-25, over defending national champion Minnesota-Duluth.

While there has been no confirmation from Winters of any contact with the Zips, the native of Akron, former Zips player and assistant coach likely will not come at a hometown discount.

It is understood that Winters, who has built the Warriors from a 1-9 doormat in 2004 into consistent winners, is paid in the neighborhood of $250,000. Hard to see a proven head coach such as Winters taking over a talent-depleted, potentially scholarship-short program without a contract at least as lucrative as the $375,000 deal signed by the fired Rob Ianello, who was hired after being a recruiting coordinator for Notre Dame.

Wayne State (11-3) plays Saturday at Winston-Salem State (13-0), a team that has scored 55 or more points five times this season.

Who or what do you blame for Sunday's loss against the Baltimore Ravens?

Tracy Boulian/The Plain DealerRay Rice ran over the Cleveland Browns.

Plenty of blame goes around for Sunday's loss against the Baltimore Ravens. The Browns didn't tackle well, didn't block well, still have issues when it comes to scoring touchdowns, and still lack explosive talent.

And how about coach Pat Shurmur? He doesn't have a host of talent to work with, but Shurmur tried to make something happen late in the first half and it led to an interception and a Ravens field goal.

Join us for a live Browns chat today at noon with The Plain Dealer's Tony Grossi. The Browns lost to the Ravens on Sunday. Just how far away is this team from the Ravens? Is there any hope the Browns can pull an upset on Thursday? We'll answer those questions and more.

View full sizeChat live with Tony Grossi every Monday at noon.

Join us for a live Browns chat today at noon with The Plain Dealer's Tony Grossi.

The Browns lost to the Ravens on Sunday. Just how far away is this team from the Ravens? Is there any hope the Browns can pull an upset on Thursday?

You can jump in the chat room and ask your questions as well as interact with other users and respond to Tony's remarks, or you can just listen. The chat will also be made available shortly after its completion in mp3 format.

Note: To turn off audio alerts, click on round button on bottom left of chat room and click on preferences.

Former Cleveland Browns center Steve Everitt and running back Leroy Hoard served as honorary captains at the Browns-Ravens game on Sunday. Watch a video interview in which they talk about the team's move to Baltimore in 1995. Watch video

Former Cleveland Browns center Steve Everitt and running back Leroy Hoard served as honorary captains at the Browns-Ravens game on Sunday.

In an interview with The Plain Dealer's Dennis Manoloff, the two talked about playing with the Browns coming out of the University of Michigan. Hoard, who played for the Browns from 1990-95, also talked about his 1991 season during which he scored 11 touchdowns. Hoard was a 1994 Pro Bowl selection.

Everitt, who played for the Browns from 1993-1995, talked about his passion for playing in Cleveland and showed off the famous Browns bandana he wore while with the Ravens, a uniform violation for which he was fined $5,000. The two talked about that final season in Cleveland and the difficulty of the move to Baltimore. Finally, each talked about retiring at relatively young ages, Everitt with the Eagles and Hoard with the Vikings, both in 1999.

Click here to watch the video and post your comments about Hoard and Everitt below

The Cleveland Browns are having another season dismal season.

Cleveland Plain DealerColt McCoy

Ohio.com columnist Marla Ridenour writes how if 1990 was the Browns’ “Season From Hell,” then what the heck is this season.

How bad is it?

The 2011 Browns can’t catch a pass. They can’t stop the run. They don’t have any playmakers on offense. They don’t have a quarterback who can make them competitive this year in the AFC North. They didn’t handle the weather conditions, even though the temperature at kickoff was 54 degrees.

Ridenour writes how Colt McCoy was so bad that on the Browns’ last series before halftime, he could have been intercepted on four consecutive plays, one nullified by penalty. But cornerback Jimmy Smith finally came through for the Ravens, picking off McCoy’s pass for Mohamed Massaquoi and returning it 32 yards to set up a Billy Cundiff field goal.

McCoy tried to remain positive, which is what a leader is supposed to do. But he’s sounding less believable every Sunday.

“We are a group that’s growing and maturing,” McCoy said. “We are facing a lot of different struggles each week. I think it’s important for us to keep our heads together and keep plowing through it and know that there is something bright at the end of this thing.”

More Cleveland Browns

Pittsburgh linebacker LaMarr Woodley will return on Thursday against the Browns (ESPN.com).

The Browns were outnumbered (The News-Herald).

Ray Rice ran over the Cleveland Browns (CantonRep.com).

Ravens run over the Browns (TribToday.com).

Madonna, who has sold more than 300 million records, will perform at halftime of the Super Bowl in Indianapolis. The NFL and NBC announced Sunday during the Detroit-New Orleans game that the Grammy Award-winning singer will highlight the show at Lucas Oil Stadium on Feb. 5.

Associated PressMadonna will perform at halftime Feb. 5 at the Super Bowl in Indianapolis.

NEW YORK (AP) — The Material Girl will be taking the stage on football's biggest night.

Madonna, who has sold more than 300 million records, will perform at halftime of the Super Bowl in Indianapolis. The NFL and NBC announced Sunday during the Detroit-New Orleans game that the Grammy Award-winning singer will highlight the show at Lucas Oil Stadium on Feb. 5.

The show is the most-watched musical event of the year, with more than 162 million in the U.S. tuning in to see The Black Eyed Peas' performance with Slash and Usher in Dallas at halftime of Green Bay's Super Bowl win over Pittsburgh last February.

Madonna, a Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductee, will join such acts as Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band, Prince, U2, Paul McCartney, The Who and the Rolling Stones to perform during recent Super Bowls. She will collaborate with a team from Cirque du Soleil, choreographer Jamie King, and artists from Moment Factory.

Madonna, currently in the studio working on a new album, has a new film "W.E." which she directed, wrote and produced and will open nationally two days before the NFL's signature event.

The Super Bowl and halftime show, sponsored by Bridgestone Americas, will be broadcast worldwide on NBC.