BALTIMORE -- Joe Flacco threw for 309 yards and two touchdowns, and the Baltimore Ravens defeated the New York Giants 33-14 on Sunday to claim the AFC North title.
The Ravens led 24-7 at halftime and cruised to the finish behind a short-handed defense that harassed quarterback Eli Manning and limited New York to 186 yards.
Playing its second game with Jim Caldwell as offensive coordinator, Baltimore (10-5) scored touchdowns on its first two possessions and amassed a season-high 533 yards -- including 289 in the first half alone.
The victory ended a three-game skid for the Ravens and assured them of a home playoff game in the first weekend of January.
The defeat eliminated the defending Super Bowl champion Giants (8-7) from contention in the NFC East and severely damaged their chances of qualifying for a playoff berth.
New York has lost five of seven and was coming off a 34-0 defeat at Atlanta.
Copyright 2012 by The Associated Press
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