Christmas and Hanukkah are over, but the Ravens still had a few gifts, including a surprising one, for their fans.

The 35-10 win over Cleveland was expected, even though the Ravens were one of only three teams to lose to the struggling Browns this season. The win crowned the Ravens as AFC North champions, but that was to be expected.

The Ravens’ offense, quarterback Lamar Jackson and running back Derrick Henry making NFL history, and several players reaching milestones also made for a nice, bright end to the season.

But nose tackle Michael Pierce’s interception in the fourth quarter put an unexpected dent in the victory. And it was also a historical piece. According to TruMedia, the NFL hadn’t had a 355-pound player make an interception in at least 25 years.

“That was the best play I’ve ever seen,” said another big man, defensive lineman Broderick Washington. This was especially true since it was a play call that defensive linemen don’t like to make.

“Because we never want to dive into pass coverage,” Washington said. “But this time we gave up – and he got a pickaxe.”

Outside linebacker Odafe Oweh was on the field. He knew the play call. He still didn’t expect to witness what he was doing.

“Normally I don’t see someone that strong on the hook catching the pass,” Oweh said. “And then when he caught it, I was like, ‘Make it six! Go for six!’”

Pierce went for 6 – yards. Then he decided to go down. Pierce said he knew history wasn’t on his side, so he decided to settle for the interception.

“There’s a long history of turning big people’s interceptions and fumbles into memes, and at the risk of turning myself into one, I decided it was just time to go home,” said Pierce. “Plus I was out of gas, so it was good.”

Oweh thought Pierce had hurt himself on the slide. Outside linebacker Tavius ​​Robinson, who was on the field ready to block for Pierce on the way to the end zone, ended up injured yourself about the piece – from laughing too hard.

“I thought we were going to bed and then he laid down,” Robinson said. “I was dying. Like I lost my voice because I was laughing so hard. Actually. It was so funny. But it was so exciting for him and it was a crazy game.”

Six yards or six points iced the game and the regular season.

Pierce’s interception was by far the most unexpected and therefore exciting, but it wasn’t the only milestone the Ravens’ defense celebrated on Saturday.

Like Pierce, rookie cornerback Nate Wiggins also had his first interception. Unlike Pierce, Wiggins returned his touchdown for a touchdown. While Pierce’s interception iced the game, Wiggins scored first.

“It definitely brought a lot of energy,” Robinson said. “As a defense, we just grow and build.”

Two drives later, outside linebacker Kyle Van Noy closed the first quarter with a 4-yard sack of Dorian Thompson-Robinson. He jumped up and did a money dance – because bag No. 12.5 earned him a $250,000 bonus. Before coming to Baltimore, Van Noy had never had more than 6.5 sacks in a season. He has 21.5 in two seasons here.

Two quarters later, Oweh fired Bailey Zappe and joined Van Noy in an exclusive club, the Double-Digit Sack Club. Oweh’s 10 sacks double his production from last season. It was the first 10-sack season of his entire life, not just his NFL career, he said.

Meanwhile, inside linebacker Roquan Smith recorded 10 tackles, bringing his career total to 1,005. At 27, he is the youngest NFL player to make 1,000 tackles.

As coach John Harbaugh likes to say, individual achievements lead to overall team success, and that was the case with the defense on Saturday. The Ravens held the Browns to 250 net yards, a poor record even for this 3-14 team. They had only finished under 250 five times before. The Browns’ 56 rushing yards were their fewest this season.

It was a great way to end the season, especially after the defense and its first-year coordinator, Zach Orr, faced a lot of doubt and criticism early on.

“It’s cool when you just win in your first year,” Oweh said. “But when you’re able to overcome adversity and right wrongs and make things right, that’s a testament to the team and then also to the relationship with the players on the team. That’s why I feel like Zach really showed something this year.”

The regular season stats and records are in, but this team still has at least one game left.

It has gained momentum – it ranks first in a long list of defensive stats since Orr made adjustments in Week 11: yards allowed per game (261.7), yards allowed per game (4.4), passing allowed Yards per game (171.6), “expected.” ” Points added per game (0.15) and success rate (60.2%). And it didn’t stop even against a weaker opponent.

Aside from the bad penalties that have been a problem all season, this was the performance the players wanted to start the postseason.

“We are peaking at the right time,” Washington said. “And as long as we keep doing what we’re doing, I don’t know too many teams that will play against us.”