CLEVELAND -- Tight end Mark Andrews and the Baltimore Ravens didn't waste any time getting into the record books.
On the fifth play of Sunday's game against the Cleveland Browns, Andrews caught an 11-yard pass to break the franchise record for career receiving yards. The longtime favorite for quarterback Lamar Jackson, Andrews entered the game needing 4 yards to reach the milestone, and the catch pushed him to 5,785 for his career.
Wide receiver Derrick Mason had held the Ravens' receiving record for 15 years. He totaled 5,777 yards for Baltimore from 2005 to 2010.
"Congrats Mark," Mason wrote on social media.
With the record, Andrews became the fifth tight end to lead a franchise in receiving yards. The others are: Ozzie Newsome (Browns), Antonio Gates (Chargers), Travis Kelce (Chiefs) and Jason Witten (Cowboys).
In 2018, then-general manager Newsome selected Andrews in the third round in what became his final draft. The Ravens selected another tight end (Hayden Hurst) in the first round, but Andrews became a go-to target midway through his rookie season when Jackson took over as Baltimore's starting quarterback.
This is the latest Ravens record for Andrews, who holds the marks for touchdowns (55) and single-season receiving yards (1,361 in 2021). He also entered Sunday's game seven catches away from moving past Mason for the team's all-time receptions mark.
Andrews, 30, set the record in what has been his least productive season. Entering Sunday, his 27.1 yards receiving per game was the worst of his eight-year career.
A three-time Pro Bowler, Andrews is scheduled to be an unrestricted free agent after this season.
Ravens offensive coordinator Todd Monken recently said of Andrews, "He's in a rare category of guys I've been around that are tough, practices his rear end off, and it shows up in the game. He's a warrior."
