Ray Lewis and the Ravens defense shut out the Browns Monday Night in Cleveland.

In the end, all that matters is that the Ravens won. Although they didn’t play particularly well. Here are the grades:

Offense

Again, the Ravens started the game way too slowly. They looked lifeless in the first half, and the few times they got anything going, they sabotaged themselves with penalties and by letting Steven Hauschka attempt to kick a field goal. The Cleveland Browns’ defense isn’t very good, and the Ravens should have been able to move the ball much easier than they did.

Joe Flacco played fine, but was unremarkable, and Derrick Mason had a nice 41-yard reception. While Ray Rice, who scored the game’s lone offensive touchdown, continues to be a playmaker, the run offense, going against a weak run defense, did not impress. Of course, it wasn’t all bad. The offensive line did a good job containing defensive tackle Shaun Rogers. Grade: C+

Defense

The Ravens shut out the Browns, and a shutout is always impressive. But let’s face it: The Browns’ offense is putrid. The D, sometimes employing an unbalanced line, blitzed very effectively throughout the game, and Jarret Johnson was a nuisance in the backfield. At one point, Trevor Pryce sacked Brady Quinn even though the Ravens only rushed three guys.

The Ravens did play well, but it was a huge talent mismatch. Dawan Landry returned an interception for a touchdown, and Chris Carr — of all people — also added an INT. But with the Browns’ passing game being so woeful, it’s hard to tell if the Ravens’ pass defense has improved, although Lardarius Webb is a welcome addition to the secondary. (He even had a sack.) Grade: A

Special Teams

The parts of the special teams unrelated to Hauschka were very good — although Carr didn’t do much with three punt returns. Webb had a stellar kickoff return and he made a great play to trap the Browns on their own seven yard line, and Sam Koch was old reliable. But Wide Left missed another field goal, you guessed it, wide left. And he had an extra point blocked, which wasn’t necessarily his fault. Nevertheless, he’s proved to be an unreliable kicker. Grade: C
--- RONALD T. ZIZMOR.