With Baltimore needing a win to win the AFC North and the Cleveland Browns without several key players, the Ravens are a 20-point favorite for Saturday’s division game, according to ESPN BET on Friday afternoon.

It’s the largest spread in Ravens history and the largest in the NFL since 2021, when the Arizona Cardinals (-20) beat the Houston Texans 31-5 in Week 7.

Baltimore can clinch a division title and the No. 3 seed in the playoffs with a win on Saturday, while Cleveland is completely out of postseason contention and is expected to start Bailey Zappe at quarterback. The Browns have ruled out running backs Jerome Ford and Pierre Strong, tight end David Njoku and cornerback Denzel Ward for the contest.

The Ravens were 18.5-point favorites on ESPN BET (some sportsbooks start at -17.5) and jumped to -20 when it was announced on Thursday that Zappe would get the nod. While much of the betting audience is backing Cleveland based on ticket count, many big-money bettors appear to be backing Baltimore, with BetMGM reporting 53% of the spread grip on the favorite; The sportsbook told ESPN it was “good action both ways with a big spread.”

Over the last 30 seasons, favorites with 20 or more points are only 3-6 ahead of the spread, but the last two seasons are consistent. No favorite by 18 or more points has lost a game outright in the NFL since 1977, and if Baltimore loses outright by -20 points, it would be the biggest upset of the Super Bowl era, according to ESPN Research.

ESPN BET lists the Ravens as -8000 favorites to win the AFC North, with the Pittsburgh Steelers, who would win the division with a win over the Cincinnati Bengals and a loss to Baltimore on Saturday, listed at +2200. The Steelers held a majority of the bets and money to win the AFC North in sports betting on Sunday.

Should Pittsburgh lose the AFC North’s other showdown on Saturday, it opens the door to the playoffs for the Bengals, as they need that win as well as losses to the Denver Broncos and Miami Dolphins to qualify. ESPN BET puts the odds of this happening at +1100, but says it has been the most popular bet in this market by stakes and handles over the past two weeks.