OWINGS MILLS, Md. (AP)—Ray Lewis(notes) usually helps the Baltimore Ravens win by
yelling in the huddle, setting the defense and chasing down the guy with the
football.

Lately, the 12-time Pro Bowl middle linebacker has been forced to play the
role of cheerleader and sideline coach.

And he’s getting pretty darn tired of it.

The 36-year-old Lewis has missed Baltimore’s past two games with an injured
right toe. He was held out of practice Wednesday, but hopes to be back in action
Sunday when the Ravens (8-3) face the Cleveland Browns (4-7).

“There is not even a question, I want to be out there with my teammates,”
Lewis said. “As a leader it is hard to watch your team go out there and
compete, but I can’t be selfish. I didn’t want to push it and play if I wasn’t
100 percent.”

So, while the Ravens were battling against Cincinnati and San Francisco,
Lewis watched from the sideline. Before this injury, he started in 57 straight
games and was factor in just about every one of them.

“Even though I wasn’t physically out there the last two games, I was with
my teammates the whole time cheering them on and in their ears every time I saw
something that might help,” Lewis said. “I’m doing everything I can to get
back and help this team get where we want to go.”

The Ravens proved they can win without Lewis by defeating the Bengals and
49ers, but Baltimore is clearly better with him in the middle of the defense.

“Even pregame, he motivates us and gives us what we need,” Ravens outside
linebacker Paul Kruger(notes) said. “I think we just need to get him back as quickly
as we can. His presence is definitely missed.”

Without Lewis in the huddle, Jameel McClain(notes) has done a fine job of calling
plays and setting the defense. McClain even had eight tackles against the 49ers,
tied with Bernard Pollard(notes) for the team lead.

But he’s no Lewis, and isn’t embarrassed to say so.

“Nobody can be Ray Lewis’ replacement. Ray Lewis is someone phenomenal,”
McClain said.

Still, the Ravens have performed remarkably well with McClain in the middle,
and his performance as Lewis’ backup has not gone unnoticed by his teammates.

“I’ve always trusted Jameel,” outside linebacker Terrell Suggs(notes) said. “I
think he’s getting an opportunity to show you all exactly who he is and what he
can do. But we always knew what he can do.”

McClain has played well, but he’s not alone. The Baltimore defense is
comprised mostly of veterans who understand that injuries are part of the game,
and virtually everyone on the unit stepped up against San Francisco, including
Cory Redding(notes) (2 1/2 sacks), Suggs (three sacks) and Haloti Ngata(notes) (two sacks).

“When one of your brothers goes down, you just have to rally around him,
pick him up and let him know, `We’re still going to ride, man,”’ Redding said.
“We’re still going to go out there and do our thing, and play hard. Nothing’s
going to change. Yes, we miss you. We want you back on the field like crazy. But
you know what? We’re still fighting the mission at hand. We cannot dwell on the
situation. If someone is not in the game, you can’t say, `Oh my God, what are we
going to do?’ You have to keep your eyes on the prize, keep pressing forward.”

If all goes well for Lewis this week, he will return Sunday in a game the
Ravens need to win to stay atop the AFC North. The Browns wouldn’t be surprised
at all if No. 52 is back in uniform for the first time since Nov. 13 in Seattle.

“I’m thinking he’s going to play,” Cleveland coach Pat Shurmur said. “I
know he’s a competitor and he wants to be out there and help the team, so my
guess is he’ll play. They have talent and leadership at all levels of the
defense, but he’s obviously the leader of the linebacking corps there. I’m sure
with him in the lineup, it helps them be better. We’re anticipating he’ll be in
there.”

And if Lewis isn’t ready, the Ravens will again hand over the reins to
McClain.

“Without Ray in the huddle we still have to go about the same business as
scheduled,” Redding said. “Seeing Ray for so many years, Jameel knows what to
do. He studies, he prepares, he’s always where he’s supposed to be and makes
plays. That builds confidence among the rest of us, knowing that even though Ray
isn’t in the game, we still have Jameel to come out and lead us.”

With an assist from Lewis on the sideline.

“Ray is still pretty much out there,” Suggs said. “He’s not playing, but
we’re still getting the calls, making adjustments on what he sees. It’s still
standard operating procedure.”

Baltimore Ravens linebacker Ray Lewis has missed two straight games and he probably won’t play against the Browns on Sunday.

That’s good news for the Browns.

“Ray has a sprained toe, turf toe kind of thing, so those are a little more unpredictable,” Harbaugh said. “I’m hopeful. I’ve used that word before. I think he’s got a real good chance but we’ll just have to see how it goes.”

Matt Vensel, reporter for the Baltimore Sun, writes how Lewis should not rush back from this type of injury. Ravens legend Jonathan Ogden, whose career was shortened by a toe injury, has some advice for Lewis.

“I made it through the game,” he said. “But I really ended up aggravating it to death and I really never recovered.”

And for those who don’t believe turf toe is that serious of an injury. Just ask Ogden.

 “I like to tell people, ‘Why don’t you just let me step on your toe real quick and see how it feels trying to walk around?’ It’s one of those things you don’t think about until you actually hurt it,” Ogden said Tuesday. “It’s hard because you are out there competing at the highest athletic level. You’re not out there doing intramurals.”

More Baltimore Ravens

The Ravens defense is ready to hunt again (Baltimore Sun).

Pernell McPhee proves he can play in the NFL (Baltimore Sun).

Matt Vensel of The Baltimore Sun wonders if the Ravens should fear the Cleveland Browns on Sunday.

His reason?

The Ravens have a habit of losing to lesser opponents following emotional wins.

Vensel writes how the Browns have a chance to pull off the upset because the defense is the biggest reason why they have been able to hang around in tight games against teams like the Oakland Raiders, Cincinnati Bengals and San Francisco 49ers.

One bright spot for the Browns, who have lost four of their past five games, was the return of “Madden” cover boy Peyton Hillis on Sunday. Hillis had been sidelined for a month and a half with a hamstring injury. In his first game back, he rushed for 65 yards on 19 carries in a 23-20 loss to the Bengals.

Vensel writes how Hillis’ running style could present a challenge for the Ravens defense if linebackers Ray Lewis and Dannell Ellerbe remain on the sidelines this weekend.

More Baltimore Ravens

The Ravens hope to improve offensive line play (Baltimore Sun).

Lee Evans will see more action for the Ravens (Baltimore Sun).

The Ravens need to be patient with Ray Lewis (Baltimore Sun).

BEREA, Ohio — If anyone knows the value of a deep-threat wide receiver, it is Baltimore Ravens General Manager Ozzie Newsome. He’s been searching for one for years.

“Once you have the quarterback, eventually you have to get that [receiver] piece,” Newsome said Tuesday in a phone interview. “You have to have somebody to throw to.”

Since drafting strong-armed quarterback Joe Flacco in the first round in 2008, Newsome has tried, mostly in vain, to acquire a fast, reliable receiver to complete his offense. Famously known for their dominating defense, the Ravens had all the other offensive pieces in place, notably all-purpose running back Ray Rice and a strong line. But even though the Ravens reached the postseason in each of Flacco’s first three seasons, the team exited each time because of a lack of firepower.

In 2010, Newsome traded for Anquan Boldin and signed Donte Stallworth and T.J. Houshmandzadeh. This year, he thought he had the problem solved through a trade for Lee Evans, but Evans missed seven games with an ankle injury. In stepped second-round rookie Torrey Smith, who has Newsome believing his search is over.

“Having his presence on the field is huge, because now people know we can take the top off the defense,” Newsome said.

Smith was taken with the 58th overall pick — exactly one spot before the Browns chose Greg Little in the second round. Smith’s impact on the Ravens has been similar to that on the Cincinnati Bengals by A.J. Green, who was the draft’s fourth overall selection.

Smith has had a three-touchdown game against St. Louis, set up a game-winning field goal with a long catch against Arizona, and hauled in the game-winning touchdown against Pittsburgh (after a few drops). He’s had two of the top five receiving games in Ravens history — 152 yards vs. St. Louis and 165 vs. Cincinnati — and is second in the NFL with a yards per catch average of 19.8. Smith has five touchdowns among his 31 catches.

“Our whole passing game has become complete because we have a vertical presence now, two young tight ends that can convert against linebackers and safeties, and Anquan who can make plays all over the field, as well as having one of the best [receiving] backs out of the backfield,” Newsome said.

Newsome talked of the importance of having that dangerous speed receiver after reviewing the coaches tape of Green snatching victory for the Bengals out of the air against the Browns on Sunday.

“What it does, it’s like having a great tailback,” Newsome said. “When you go into a game and you have a player like that, the first thing as an offensive staff you say, ‘OK, what are they going to do to take him away?’ Then when you find that out, that helps you to be able to dictate how you’re going to play the game. Whatever they’re going to do, it allows you to say, ‘OK, this is how we need to play the game.’ Because they’ll have some type of plan of taking him away.

“You have to be able to get the cheap touchdown,” Newsome went on. “At the end of the day, we’re still going to run the football. People know when we show up, you’re gonna have to stop the run. Then people put that eighth and ninth guy in the box. How do you defeat the eighth and ninth guy in the box? You have to go on top of them.

“It’s hand in hand. If you can’t run, they’re just gonna play cover 2 and that takes the vertical game right out it. But if they play cover 2 and try to defend the run with six or seven in the box, you’re out there to run it. So you have to field a team, not just one aspect of it. This league is so good, they can take one thing away.”

The trouble is finding that special receiver to strike fear in defenses.

“I think you have to look at three ways of trying to make that happen,” Newsome said. “You can go through the draft, do it through free agency if one of them makes it, or do it through trade.

“In order to get one of those guys, you probably have to be picking in the top five of the draft. I don’t want that as an option. So then, the next viable option is, you try to get one and you try to develop one. Right now, if Torrey continues the way he’s going, then people will have to do something to take him away, because he’s a home run threat.”

As Newsome’s fortune would have it, Evans is healthy now as the Ravens embark on the final rounds of a knockdown, drag-out fight for the AFC North.

“Lee Evans proved to us that he can do it, then he got hurt. So now we have basically two guys that can take the top off the defense,” Newsome said.

On Twitter: @TonyGrossi

Tony Grossi’s Scouting Report

Browns vs. Baltimore Ravens

Sunday, 4:05 p.m., in Cleveland Browns Stadium

Record: 8-3.

Last game: Beat 49ers, 16-9, Nov. 24, in Baltimore.

Coach: John Harbaugh, 44-22, fourth year.

Series record: Ravens lead, 17-7.

Last meeting: Ravens won, 20-10, Dec. 26, in Cleveland.

League rankings: Offense is 17th overall (26th rushing, 13th passing), defense is third (third rushing, fifth passing) and turnover differential is plus-4.

Offensive overview: Coordinator Cam Cameron has taken grief for throwing too much and ignoring all-purpose running back Ray Rice. Conversations with the coach and management, plus the onset of inclement weather, have taken care of that oversight. Early on, Cameron was preoccupied with developing quarterback Joe Flacco’s deep passing game. While it may have cost the team a win or two, the benefit has been the development of rookie Torrey Smith, who is a bona fide deep threat but still suffers an occasional drop. Smith got playing time while veteran trade acquisition Lee Evans missed seven games with an ankle injury. With Evans back, Flacco has two vertical targets, a fairly dependable intermediate target in Anquan Boldin, tight ends Ed Dickson and Dennis Pitta, and Rice to throw to. Quite a cockpit for Flacco to operate from.

Defensive overview: Former Browns DB coach Chuck Pagano took over as coordinator with the marching orders to restore a pass rush in the defensive attack. Boy, has he. After a nine-sack tour de force against the 49ers on Thanksgiving night, the club leads the NFL with 38 sacks and 16 forced fumbles, and is second with 10 recoveries. Their formula is simple: stop the run on early downs (yielding league-low 3.4 yards per rush), force the opponent into third-and-longs and then pressure the quarterback into turnovers or, at worst, sacks. Experienced playmakers such as tackle Haloti Ngata, linebacker Terrell Suggs and safety Ed Reed make this unit a coordinator’s dream. It registered the nine sacks last game without linebacker Ray Lewis (turf toe). The new name on the unit is cornerback Jimmy Smith, a first-round draft pick, who has one interception and is developing his rookie year as the third corner.

Special teams overview: Kicker Billy Cundiff is 25 of 31 on field goals with a long of 51 yards, his only conversion in six attempts over 50. He is second in the NFL with 38 touchbacks. When Cundiff doesn’t knock them out of the end zone, the Ravens’ kick coverage ranks 31st and has given up a 107-yard touchdown return. Punter Sam Koch is 10th in gross average (46.8 yards) and 11th in net (39.8).

Players to watch:

• Linebacker Terrell Suggs: One of the most prolific sack artists of his time, he has 12 career sacks and seven forced fumbles against the Browns. His nine sacks rank second in the AFC and seventh in the league overall.

• Safety Ed Reed: Talk about Browns-killer. He has more interceptions (10), interceptions for touchdowns (three) and passes defensed (18) against the Browns than any other opponent.

• Receiver Torrey Smith: This second-round rookie already owns two of the franchise’s top five receiving days. His 19.8-yard average — 30 catches for 613 yards and five TD — ranks second among NFL receivers.

Injury report: LB Ray Lewis (toe) has missed the last two games. DB Chris Carr (back), LB Dannell Ellerbe (groin), DT Arthur Jones (concussion), and RB Anthony Allen (thigh) all missed the last game.

Small world: Among the many players, coaches and executives who formerly worked or played for the Browns are: General Manager Ozzie Newsome, senior personnel assistant George Kokinis, defensive line coach Clarence Brooks, defensive coordinator Chuck Pagano, director of pro personnel Vince Newsome, vice president of football administration Pat Moriarty, assistant special teams coach Marwan Maalouf and special teams coordinator Jerry Rosburg. … Receiver Lee Evans attended Bedford High School. … Safety Haruki Nakamura is a Cleveland native who attended St. Edward High School. … Scout Jack Glowik is a Cleveland native who attended Benedictine High School. … Linebackers coach Dean Pees is a former head coach at Kent State.

– Tony Grossi

The Baltimore Ravens have long been known for consistently applying pressure regardless of who is the play caller, whether it be Greg Mattison or Rex Ryan, or the pressure player, such as Terrell Suggs, Ray Lewis or Ed Reed. This year is no different, as defensive coordinator Chuck Pagano has been exceedingly aggressive in calling the defense by dialing up an abundance of blitzes. One of the blitzes that he’s used and that has been around for years in Baltimore, as well as the rest of the NFL, is the Fire Zone blitz.

As Sports Illustrated writer and author Tim Layden eloquently wrote in his book, Blood, Sweat and Chalk, the Fire Zone was initially developed in the early 1970s by Miami Dolphins defensive mastermind Bill Arnsparger. Arnsparger explained, “we were able to rush five guys and cover with six. That’s what you need to run a zone blitz. We could usually drop a linebacker in that slot zone, and that gave people a lot of problems.”

The Fire Zone Blitz developed by Arnsparger would change the way defense would be played forever. At the time of the development, defenses were primarily using man blitzes, which quarterbacks were used to as they would simply dump off the ball to their hot read. However, Arnsparger’s zone blitz made that more difficult because the typically vacated area left by the blitzer would be replaced by another defender unexpectedly dropping into coverage, which was often a backside defensive end or outside linebacker (3-4). If quarterbacks attempted to throw it to their “hot” receiver, it would often result in an incomplete pass or an interception.

An example of a Fire Zone Blitz with 3-3 coverage behind it.

Decades later, the defensive concept is still in vogue and led by Steelers defensive coordinator Dick LeBeau, who made it most popular by building his 1983 Bengals defense around it. The Ravens have also mastered this over the years, as evidenced against the 49ers last week.

In Baltimore, Pagano has done a marvelous job of mixing up his Fire Zone Blitzes, playing different coverages behind the five pressure players and keeping the offensive players guessing as to which player is coming after them. The Fire Zone Blitz , sometimes simply called “zone blitz,” typically has three underneath and three deep defenders splitting the field into thirds in coverage while other times having four underneath with two deep defenders splitting the field into halves.

Against the 49ers, Pagano and his defense got to San Francisco quarterback Alex Smith nine (!) times, tying a franchise record for sacks in a single game. Many times, it was simply with three or four pass rushers whilst other times getting to Smith with blitzes, such as the aforementioned Fire Zone.

Before the ball was put into play by Smith, the 49ers showed a run-centered package with their 12 personnel, which means 1 running back and 2 tight ends. To counter this, the Ravens came out in their 30 Nickel package, which suggests that there are three down lineman and five defensive backs.

49ers show 12 personnel against Ravens 30 Nickel package.

In their Fire Zone Blitz look, the Ravens divided their responsibilities in several different ways. Below, I color coded the blitzers in white and the pass coverage defenders in red. The responsibilities are defined as the following:

Ravens prepare for takeoff.

DEFENSIVE LINE:

A (between C and G) — Attack the A gap in between the Center and Right Guard (62).

C (outside the OT) — There are two C gap attackers on this play, with both being the defensive ends.  To your right, defensive end Terrell Suggs attacked the C gap by rushing outside and widening the Right Tackle. On the other side, defensive end Haloti Ngata attacked C gap to the outside of the left tackle.

Image courtesy of Footballoutsiders.com

BLITZERS:

B (between G and OT) — The nickel back and the middle linebacker will both attack the B gap from their respective alignments. The nickel back will loop from the C gap outside into the B gap to attract the attention of the tailback while the middle linebacker will attack the B gap on a delayed blitz, which allows him to obliterate the pocket by coming in untouched.

PASS DEFENDERS:

F — The two cornerbacks are flat defenders. They are to buzz the flat in soft (5-7 yards deep) coverage.

H — Hook defenders are the backside linebacker dropping in coverage on the left of the image as well as the linebacker (51).

Deep 1/2 — The two safeties deep are responsible for dividing their coverage into two halves of the field.

The 49ers attempted to counter the Ravens’ zone blitz by using zone protection. By doing this, the uncovered offensive linemen were required to help the playside teammate out in blocking the defender while the covered offensive linemen were asked to block the man that was in front of them. Unfortunately for the 49ers, they ran into some issues.

On the left side, Ngata, who lined up in a three technique over the left guard (77), ended up long-sticking across the guard’s face and into the C gap, which forced the left guard to help out before looking elsewhere to block. Meanwhile, the center (briefly) helped out the guard to his side before releasing to the second level as the “cleanup” guy, taking out any extra blitzers. However, he missed a blitzer, which was the Ravens linebacker (53) who made a beeline for quarterback Alex Smith.

Ravens demolish 49ers zone protection with the Fire Zone Blitz.

Once the blitzing inside linebacker got to Smith, it was all over, as the rest of the 49ers offensive line caved in and gave up the sack. This was one of many for the Ravens as they picked apart the 49ers offensive line with great precision.

Mission accomplished.

Last but not least, the Ravens’ pressure players, led by Suggs, have done a great job over the years of getting to the quarterback. They’ve used several types of Fire Zone Blitzes to get to signal callers, and as the creator of the website Blitzology.blogspot.com explained, the Ravens used a very similar designed zone blitz last season against the Carolina Panthers. The only difference was that it ran the opposite way and out of a Dime package (six defensive backs).

Image courtesy of Blitzology.blogspot.com

For more, here’s another breakdown of the Fire Zone with Cover 2 behind it (starts at the 1:10 mark).