Lamar Jackson broke the NFL career rushing record for a quarterback in Baltimore’s 31-2 win over the Houston Texans on Wednesday, strengthening his case for MVP as the Ravens edged closer to the AFC North title.
Jackson threw for 168 yards and two touchdowns and ran for 87 yards and another score. He reached 6,110 in his career to surpass Michael Vick, who had 6,109 over his 13-year career.
The Ravens (11-5) have already clinched their third playoff berth and need a win over Cleveland next week to clinch the division over Pittsburgh. The Steelers lost for the third time with a loss to Kansas City on Wednesday.
Jackson, the MVP last season and in 2019, put on a show rivaled only by Beyoncé’s stunning Super Bowl-caliber halftime performance to lead Baltimore to its third straight win. And he needed just over three quarters to do it, giving way to Josh Johnson with about 10 minutes left and the game to be decided.
Jackson threw 9- and 1-yard TD passes and was not touched A 48-yard scoring scamper Which made it 24-2 in the third quarter.
Derrick Henry rushed for 147 yards and set a Ravens season record with his 16th touchdown on a 2-yard run in the first quarter. He eclipsed Ray Rice (2011) and Mark Ingram (2019).
Baltimore dominated a Houston team on Saturday after losing dynamic receiver Tank Dale to a season-ending knee injury.
The AFC South champions struggled to finish drives and scored their only points on a safety in the second quarter. CJ Stroud threw for 185 yards, but was sacked five times and threw an interception and Joe Mixon managed just 26 yards rushing as the Texans (9-7) lost their second straight.
Rookie Kamari Lassiter hit Henry for a 4-yard loss for a safety to cut the lead to 10-2 with about 10 minutes left in the first half.
Damon Pierce then returned the kickoff 45 yards to the Texans’ 43. But they came up empty when Mixon was stopped at the 1 after catching a short pass on fourth-and-3.
Jackson then orchestrated a 99-yard drive to pad the lead. He ran to avoid the rush and found Mark Andrews for a 67-yard gain to give the Ravens the lead with just over two minutes left in the first half.
Isaiah Prospect’s 9-yard TD reception two plays later made it 17-2. It was the first 17-2 halftime score in NFL history.
Kyle Hamilton intercepted Stroud’s pass on the first drive of the second half. Two plays later, Jackson’s long TD run made it 24-2.
He set the rushing record on a 6-yard run on Baltimore’s next drive. Later in the drive, he scrambled to avoid several defenders before finding Andrews for a 1-yard score to put Baltimore up 31–2.
injuries
Ravens RB Rasheen Ali injured his groin in the third quarter and did not return. … Texans TE Cade Stover is back after missing two games following an emergency appendectomy.
Next
The Ravens host the Browns, and the Texans visit the Titans next weekend. The dates of the match are yet to be decided.
Reporting by the Associated Press.
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