Monday’s “First Call” has Bill Cowher’s idea for the Pittsburgh Steelers to beat the Baltimore Ravens on Sunday night. Gambling odds are out on that AFC North showdown. We check in on Lamar Jackson’s health in Baltimore.

And some of the Cleveland Browns had interesting quotes after their upset win over the Steelers on Sunday.

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Cowher power

Former Steelers coach Bill Cowher volunteered an offensive strategy for the Steelers to beat the Baltimore Ravens on Sunday night in the winner-take-all showdown for the AFC North.

“The guys I’d go to right, now? Jonnu Smith and Pat Freiermuth,” Cowher said on CBS. “To me, I put a game plan together that is running the ball and play action with Pat Freiermuth and Jonnu Smith. They are the best skill players you have right now. That’s it.”

With wide receivers DK Metcalf (suspension) and Calvin Austin (injury) unavailable in Cleveland on Sunday, the Steelers’ passing game was ineffective. Quarterback Aaron Rodgers averaged a meager 4.3 yards per attempt on 39 throws.

Freiermuth, though, had 63 yards on just three catches. Smith had five receptions, but for just 18 yards. He also had 9 rushing yards.

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More sports

• Airing of Grievances: Possession down disasters, blown opportunities lead to another Steelers failure in Cleveland
• Steelers WR corps manages just 60 combined receiving yards in defeat without DK Metcalf
• Steelers TE Darnell Washington suffers broken arm during loss to Browns
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Barking Browns

After their win over the Steelers on Sunday, the Browns certainly had a lot to say.

Defensive end Myles Garrett accused Pittsburgh of being more concerned about attempting to prevent him from sacking Aaron Rodgers than devising a game plan for winning.

“I feel like they were more worried about keeping me away from Aaron than getting the win,” Garrett said. “I think that’s what came back to bite them. So, they’ll have to fight it out with Baltimore next week. But I’m just proud of the guys for fighting and getting this one. That’s the main thing.”

Garrett needed one sack to break the NFL’s single-season record of 22.5, currently held by T.J. Watt and Michael Strahan. He didn’t get one on Sunday. The team totaled only two (Grant Delpit, Alex Wright) as Rodgers did whatever he could to get rid of the ball quickly.

Meanwhile, cornerback Denzel Ward questioned the Steelers’ decision to throw at him three times in a row in the end zone near when Marquez Valdes-Scantling was being unsuccessfully targeted in the final seconds of the game.

“I’m always just prepared and ready for moments like that,” Ward said via Cleveland.com. “I just try to make it hard on teams each time they decide to look at the scouting report and see who they are going to attack. Make it hard on them when they come my way. I don’t know whose bright idea it was to try me for the game on three plays in a row, but we (were) able to come through and get the win.”

Pittsburgh ended up with just 160 passing yards on the afternoon.

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Home dogs

The Steelers are 3½-point underdogs at home to the Baltimore Ravens on Sunday, according to DraftKings.

Something that could influence that line even more is the status of Baltimore quarterback Lamar Jackson. He sat out last week’s game with a back injury.

Baltimore was able to win anyway with Tyler Huntley at quarterback. Huntley was 16 of 20 for 107 yards and a touchdown. Derrick Henry carried the load with four touchdown runs and 216 yards on the ground.

Sunday morning, Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network said Jackson “could be back” for Week 18 in Pittsburgh.

The Steelers may also get T.J. Watt back from his partially collapsed lung. He hasn’t played the past three games.

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Don’t get carried away

The Ravens would’ve been eliminated from the playoffs, and the Steelers would have won the AFC North if the Browns had failed in their upset bid of Pittsburgh. But with Cleveland’s 13-6 win, the Ravens are still alive heading into Acrisure Stadium on Sunday night.

They sent out this post thanking their divisional rivals in Ohio for the assist.

Cleveland’s social media team was less than receptive.

The Ravens — also known as the original Browns before moving from Cleveland after the 1995 season — beat the current Browns twice this year by a combined score of 64-33.