Ravens clinch bye as Bengals land wild-card berth

Published: Jan 01, 2012 at 10:42 AM

CINCINNATI -- Ray Rice had a pair of long touchdown runs Sunday night, steadying Baltimore to a 24-16 victory over the Cincinnati Bengals that gave the Ravens their third AFC North title and the No. 2 seed in the playoffs.

Baltimore (12-4) will get a first-round bye followed by a playoff game at home, where the Ravens are 8-0 this season.

Despite the loss, the Bengals (9-7) also got into the playoffs, securing the final wild card as the Jets and Broncos also lost. It's Cincinnati's third playoff appearance in the last 21 years.

With Paul Brown Stadium packed with Bengals fans for the first time all season, Rice made the biggest plays on a blustery afternoon. He had a career-best 70-yard touchdown run on the fourth play.

Rice also broke a 51-yard touchdown run with 5:41 to go and finished with 191 yards on 24 carries.

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