OWINGS MILLS, Md. -- Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson has captivated the football world for the past three years with his highlight-reel moves, spinning around defenders and juking them in the open field like few have ever done.

Jackson's latest and most compelling moment came in the Ravens' 47-42 victory over the Cleveland Browns, producing a what-just-happened comeback for the ages.

From his mysterious departure to the locker room to his surprising reemergence on the sideline, Jackson provided more heart-pounding intrigue than any episode of "NCIS." The footage of the injured NFL MVP running out of the locker room to keep his team's playoffs hopes alive will be forever fixed in Monday Night Football lore.

It was live theater at its best, 70 minutes of real-time drama from the time Jackson first experienced cramps to Justin Tucker hitting the winning 55-yard field goal.

Here's a look inside of how this instant classic unfolded:

10:30 p.m.: Jackson feels his body cramping up for the first time. The Ravens are ahead 28-20 with less than five minutes left in the third quarter. "Right before those two passes I threw to Willie [Snead] and Mark [Andrews] -- the overthrow -- I was cramping in my forearm," Jackson said. "And I was telling Coach, 'I need to get some salt in my system really quick.'"

10:36 p.m.: Jackson remains in the game after an interception by Browns quarterback Baker Mayfield sets up Baltimore at the Browns' 1-yard line. Jackson's status worsens after handing the ball off to running back J.K. Dobbins, whose touchdown run extends Baltimore's lead to 34-20 with 4:21 remaining in the third quarter. "My legs just started cramping. I'm like, 'I need something now to help me get better really quick, because this is a crucial game, right here. Both teams are playing their hearts out,'" Jackson said.

10:38 p.m.: Jackson gingerly jogs down the stadium tunnel and into the locker room. "There was no indication that Lamar was coming back at that point," Ravens coach John Harbaugh said.

10:54 p.m.: The Ravens tweet out these eight words: "Ravens injury update — QB Lamar Jackson -- questionable -- cramps." As this is being announced, the Browns cut the Ravens’ lead to 34-28 early in the fourth quarter on Mayfield's 21-yard touchdown pass to Rashard Higgins. In the locker room, Jackson is getting salt into his system and getting stretched out by the team's medical staff. "I just wanted it to go away as soon as possible," Jackson said. "It was a crucial game. We had to come out with the victory, and I was just cramping at the wrong time."

11:11 p.m.: Mayfield's sliding 5-yard touchdown puts Cleveland ahead 35-34 with 6:33 left in the game. Ahead by 14 points when Jackson first left, the Ravens find themselves trailing. "It seemed like there were several times where you just could have gotten down and been like, 'Man, it's over,'" Ravens cornerback Marlon Humphrey said. "But we made them earn it, and they moved the ball on the defense at times, but we just kept fighting, and the offense bailed us out."

11:21 p.m.: On his second drive, backup quarterback Trace McSorley moves Baltimore into Cleveland territory before his left knee buckles when he tries to cut back to convert a third-and-5. "Obviously, it was sad to see Trace go down like that," Andrews said. "So, that was the first thing we thought. Then, you see Willie [Snead] taking snaps -- 'Steamin' Willie' -- he's played quarterback before. If we had to do that, we were going to make it work. Then, Lamar shows up and saves the day."

11:22 p.m.: With the game stopped for McSorley's injury at the two-minute warning, Jackson shockingly trots onto the sideline to get his helmet and returns to the game. "And as I'm seeing [McSorley] go down, I was still stretching [in the locker room]," Jackson said. "I was catching an attitude, because it wasn't going the way we wanted it to. And then I saw [McSorley] go down, and I was like, 'We've got to start now. We've just got to go out there now.' And I started running out there."

According to ESPN Analytics, when Jackson returned from the locker room at the two-minute warning last night the Ravens had a 56% chance to reach the playoffs.

11:25 p.m.: On his first play back, Jackson scrambles on fourth-and-5 and throws a 44-yard touchdown to Marquise Brown while on the run. Baltimore retakes the lead at 42-35. "There was no doubt," Brown said. "We know we have a chance whenever we get the ball with Lamar, so we just had to go out there and make a play."

After that touchdown pass to Brown, the Ravens had an 82% chance to reach the playoffs, according ESPN Analytics.

Lamar Jackson rolls out to find Hollywood Brown for TDpic.twitter.com/2JXk7QD

— Baltimore Ravens (@Ravens) Dec. 15, 2020

11:31 p.m.: The Browns respond immediately to tie the score at 42 on Mayfield’s 22-yard touchdown pass to Kareem Hunt. "We were trying to do whatever it took to win in that second half,” Mayfield said. "When you play a team like that, Lamar is an unbelievable player and he is just going to make a lot of plays. You go into that game knowing that you are going to have to score points."

11:36 p.m.: With 1:04 left in the game, Jackson takes over at his own 25-yard line with one previous fourth-quarter comeback victory in his career. "All I'm thinking about is winning that game," Jackson said. "We had enough time on the clock, and I was like, 'Man, it's go time.' It was just 'go time' for us, and it was our time, I feel."

11:39 p.m.: Jackson spikes the ball to stop the clock with seven seconds left after he swiftly moves Baltimore 38 yards downfield on four completions. “It makes my job a lot easier and the offense's job a lot easier; we didn’t have to score a touchdown," Jackson said. "Some coaches don't trust their kicker; we trust ours. We put all our faith in ours. And we just had to get him in great position to kick the field goal. And 'Automatic Tuck' -- he did the rest."

11:40 p.m.: Tucker drills a 55-yard field goal that sails inside the left upright. His 16th winning kick -- and a game-ending safety -- gave Baltimore a thrilling 47-42 win. "If you wrote a movie about this, people wouldn’t believe it," Harbaugh said. "They would say it could never happen. Reality is stranger than fiction, or whatever that saying is. That's kind of what it is here -- it's crazy."