BALTIMORE — The Baltimore Ravens understand just how embarrassing it would be to lose to the winless Cleveland Browns in prime time.

They would rather focus on the benefits of a victory, which would thrust Baltimore into sole possession of first place in the AFC North, a half-game ahead of the Steelers.

Facing the Browns (0-9) tonight, the Ravens (4-4) have an opportunity to sustain the momentum derived from a win over Pittsburgh that ended a four-game losing streak.

“I think the fact that (the Browns) haven’t won yet does add to the challenge for us, because they’re going to be coming in here very determined to win a football game,” Baltimore coach John Harbaugh said. “Their issues aren’t our issues. Our issue right now is to build on where we’re at.”

Still, the Ravens know a loss to Cleveland would be a severe blow to their reputation.

“When you’re a team that’s in front of the division — and with how the outside world looks at it — if the Ravens lose this game, it just looks bad,” quarterback Joe Flacco said. “It looks bad because we lost to a team that doesn’t have any wins. That’s the reality of it. It just doesn’t look good.”

Here’s something that really doesn’t look good: nine straight defeats to open a season. That matches the worst start in Browns history, a dubious mark set by the 1975 squad that finished 3-11.

Cleveland has been outscored by 105 points, ranks 31st in total defense and has already sorted through a half-dozen quarterbacks.

“It gets tougher every week that you don’t get a win,” veteran tackle Joe Thomas said “Obviously, as those loss totals stack up, it is more difficult to be positive.”

The skid would have never gotten this far if the Browns would have capitalized on a 20-0 lead at home against Baltimore in Week 2. The Ravens rallied for a 25-20 win and now own a 26-9 advantage in this lopsided rivalry.

“We know how to start games; we have not been able to finish them yet,” first-year coach Hue Jackson said. “Our motivation is we need a win. We are a 0-9 football team, and we want to get on the other side of the ledger.”

Browns quarterback Cody Kessler has shown improvement, but he’s 0-6 as a starter.