(Sports Network) – The Baltimore Ravens have had trouble this season following up big victories when they face a team below .500. They have a chance to buck that trend this Sunday with a matchup with the last-place Cleveland Browns.

The Ravens look to win a sixth straight divisional game and seventh in a row over the Browns this weekend at Cleveland Browns Stadium.

With an 8-3 record, Baltimore is not only tied with Pittsburgh for first place in the AFC North, but for the best record in the conference along with New England and Houston. The Ravens could be in an even better position, but all three of its losses this year have come against teams that were under .500 at the time.

Baltimore followed up a big Week 1 win over Pittsburgh with a loss in Tennessee, knocked off first-place Houston on Oct. 16 one week before an ugly defeat in Jacksonville and then followed up a road win over the Steelers with a setback in Seattle.

The Ravens hope those woes, which seem to creep up on the road, don’t follow them to Cleveland after they knocked off San Francisco by a 16-6 score in the “Harbaugh Bowl” on Thanksgiving. Baltimore used a club record-tying nine sacks and a touchdown pass from Joe Flacco to tight end Dennis Pitta to give head coach John Harbaugh a victory over the Niners and their sideline general, little brother Jim Harbaugh.

“It’s just a big win for us,” said John Harbaugh afterward. “It’s an opportunity going forward. It positions us really well. Now we have to conquer a game in Cleveland, one that’s been plaguing us all year.”‘

Harbaugh was referring to the Ravens’ issues against losing teams following big wins. Baltimore needs to shake the trend quickly, as its next four games are all against teams under .500, a stretch that is book-marked with games versus the Browns.

Baltimore’s head coach shook off the notion that his team just wasn’t ready for those games, saying that the Ravens just didn’t play well. He also stressed the challenge of this game given that the Browns are in the same division and are coming off a solid showing.

“We’ve got to turn over every stone,” Harbaugh said. “We certainly acknowledge that those three losses, coming off of big wins, against teams with sub-.500 records, were not good performances. They are team losses the way we look at it — coaches, players, all of us.”

The Browns certainly seem capable of pulling off the upset considering their performance last weekend in a 23-20 loss to Cincinnati. Cleveland, though, failed to hold leads of 17-7 and 20-10 as the Bengals’ Mike Nugent hit a 26- yard game-winning field with 38 ticks left.

That came after Cleveland’s Phil Dawson missed a 55-yard attempt at the other end following a bad snap. He had already hit a season-long 54-yarder earlier in the game, but long snapper Ryan Pontbriand’s toss back to the holder was low.

Pontbriand fell on the sword Tuesday, getting released.

“We didn’t finish it off,” said Browns head coach Pat Shurmur. “The Bengals did a good job of coming back on us. Just like if we had won the game it’d be a team victory, we lost the game and it was a team loss.”

Cleveland has lost four of its last five games and does not have an easy road to the end of its season. Four of its final five tests are against AFC North co-leaders Baltimore and Pittsburgh, including a meeting at the Ravens on Dec. 24.

The Ravens, meanwhile, have won two in a row despite playing both games without linebacker Ray Lewis, whom Harbaugh said has a chance of returning for this game.

Baltimore, which has won seven of its last eight versus AFC North opponents, can reach 9-3 for the second time in team history with a victory over Cleveland, joining the 2006 club.

SERIES HISTORY

The Ravens own a commanding 17-7 lead in their all-time series with the Browns, whose first edition of the franchise moved to Baltimore to become the Ravens prior to the 1996 season before re-entering the NFL as an expansion team in 1999, and have won each of the last six bouts between the rivals. Baltimore recorded its third straight home-and-home sweep of the Browns by following up a 24-17 home victory during Week 3 of the 2010 season with a 20-10 triumph in Cleveland last December, and also left Ohio with wins in both 2008 (37-27) and 2009 (16-0). The Browns last bested the Ravens via a 33-30 overtime decision at M&T Bank Stadium on Nov. 18, 2007 and topped Baltimore at home by a 27-13 count that same year as well.

Harbaugh is 6-0 lifetime against the Browns as a head coach, while Shurmur will be facing both the Ravens and Harbaugh in his current position. The two sideline bosses previously worked together on the staff of the Philadelphia Eagles from 1999-2007, with Shurmur then the team’s quarterback coach and Harbaugh the special teams coordinator and later in charge of defensive backs.

The Baltimore Ravens are back at home, leaving the mess they made in Seattle last week where they lost 22-17 to the Seahawks.

Undefeated at Baltimore’s M&T Bank Stadium where they are 4-0, the Ravens will be looking to return to their winning ways and into a first-place tie with Pittsburgh when they play host to the 6-3 Cincinnati Bengals.

One area in which the Ravens will be looking to improve this week is in getting to the opposition quarterback. In that key defensive category the Ravens have slowed down of late.

Through their opening seven games, the Ravens had collected 25 sacks but in their last two games they have managed just two.

And it won’t get any easier for the Ravens in attempting to put Cincinnati quarterback Andy Dalton on the ground. Through their first nine games the Bengals O-line has allowed Dalton to be sacked just 13 times.

Taking the rap for Baltimore’s low sack output the past two games is their defensive coordinator Chuck Pagano, who said he has to let his dogs loose.

“I’ve got to send them more,” Pagano said during his weekly briefing. “I’ve got to call more. That’s not on them. That falls on my shoulders. I’ve got to be more aggressive and get after them.

“(Opponents are) keeping more guys in to protect, they’re running the ball a little bit more. So we’ve got to do a great job on first and second down and get them into throwing situations, and no matter what the situation is, if they want to keep six or if they want to keep seven in, we’ve got to design and I’ve got to do a better job of putting our guys in position to get after the quarterback.”

Dalton, beware.

CAN’T HOLD GORE BACK

Frank Gore may be beat up but the San Francisco 49ers’ featured running back says he is ready to rumble.

“Yeah I’ll play. I’ll play good,” Gore said the other day of being able to start Sunday’s game against the Arizona Cardinals.

In last week’s important 27-20 victory over the New York Giants, Gore was a non-factor due to a knee injury that sidelined him for the second half of the game.

“I hyper-extended my leg, and it kind of shut down my leg, and I couldn’t really push off like I wanted to,” Gore said. “I wanted to be smart, and (running backs coach Tom) Rathman wanted me to be smart, knowing we’ve got a long season ahead and we can be successful, and I want to be there.”

Prior to banging up his knee, Gore had accomplished little in the game as he had six carries for ZERO yards.

It was obvious that the Giants game plan was to stop Gore and in that regard, they succeeded.

“It was 10 men in the box. They were coming to stop the run,” Gore said of the Giants’ defensive strategy.

On the season, Gore, who is also bothered by a left ankle injury, has gained 782 yards rushing, has a 4.7-yard average and rushed for five touchdowns.

To make sure that Gore doesn’t get worn down, the 49ers will probably share the running load with rookie Kendall Hunter, who gained 40 yards on six carries last week.

Whatever the coaches want to do, I’ll be fine with it,” Gore said. “But I want to be out there. I want to be out there bad.”

THIS EAGLE WON’T FLY

The Philadelphia Eagles season has fallen apart and it looks like a certainty that when they line up to face the New York Giants on Sunday they will be without the services of Michael Vick.

The banged up Eagles quarterback hasn’t practised this week due to two broken ribs, an injury he sustained in last week’s loss to Arizona.

The Eagles are expected to wait until game time before making it official but it doesn’t look good for Vick.

This week, backup Vince Young has taken all of the practice reps with the first-team offence and he’ll need that work as he has appeared in just one game this season, attempted one pass and it was intercepted.

The Eagles, who are 3-6 and all but officially eliminated from post-season play, still are holding out hope that Vick can somehow make the start.

That list includes offensive coordinator Marty Mornhinweg.

“Yeah, he’s a tough man, and I’m always optimistic with him,” Mornhinweg told reporters. “He’s doing everything possible to get ready for the next game — both in the training room as well as in the classroom.

“He’s a tough guy and wants to play. He’s tough both mentally and physically. We’ll see.”

Even if he does play, Vick has not come close to the level of play he exhibited last season.

Against Arizona, Vick was 16-for-34 with two interceptions and no touchdowns. In his past five games he has thrown five touchdown passes but also eight interceptions. On the season he has thrown 11 interceptions and has lost three fumbles.

AT LEAST HE’S HONEST

New York Giants defensive end Justin Tuck isn’t having the type of season he is accustomed to but you have to admire his honesty.

Last year Tuck counted 11 1/2 sacks on the season but this season after nine games he has registered just two.

“I do suck,” Tuck told the New York Daily News of his play this season. “I’m a very honest person. I’m not a very good player now. I do look at myself on film, and I don’t like what I see.”

This season, Tuck has been hobbled by neck and groin injuries and has played in just five games. However, he isn’t using that as an excuse.

“I feel like I’m putting forth the effort,” he said. “But there’s just some things not allowing me to play my style of football.”

Defensive coordinator Perry Fewell said he isn’t worried, that it will take time for him to regain his full health.

“He wants to return to form,” Fewell said. “It’s just taking him a little bit more time than both he and we expected.”

On Sunday, Tuck hopes to break out against the Eagles.

By Matt Conner

– Editor

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Oct 4, 2011 – What a fantastic weekend in the NFL once again with several games that surprised, but none more so than the incredible Dallas Cowboys vs. Detroit Lions match-up. The comeback by Detroit has the Motor City overjoyed while Jerry Jones and his team are trying to figure out what’s wrong (besides Tony Romo, of course). In other games, the Baltimore Ravens continue to show they might just be the best team in the NFL, while the Rams might just be the worst. No one knows what is wrong in St. Louis.

That said, it’s time for another Power Rankings after Week Four in the NFL. Check it out below:

1. Green Bay Packers (4-0) - The Packers were such a great story last year as the No. 6 playoff, but now there’s no denying their dominance over all.

2. Baltimore Ravens (3-1) – They’ve only allowed 57 points all season, second to Titans, and the offense can go high octane.

3. New England Patriots (3-1) – Brady and Belichick responded as we predicted and should win 12 games this year.

4. New Orleans Saints (3-1) - Defense needs a dominant performance at some point to believe they can go all the way. Upcoming Buccaneers game in Week 6 should provide chance.

5. Detroit Lions (4-0) – Cowboys beat themselves on this one and Lions should be 3-1. Still Stafford-to-Johnson looks historically good. 

6. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (3-1) – Good Monday night win for a quarterback who will undoubtedly be featured in primetime for years to come.

7. Buffalo Bills (3-1) - The Bengals clearly found a weakness, because the Bills defense kept this one close. The offense was inept at every turn.

8. Houston Texans (3-1) – Loss of Andre Johnson hurts prolific offense, but defense played great against Steelers.

9. San Diego Chargers (3-1) – Chargers have only scored 6 more points than they’ve allowed, worst of any division leader.

10. Tennessee Titans (3-1) - Least points allowed in NFL shows Mike Munchak’s stamp on team. If they beat Pittsburgh on Sunday, everyone will be talking about Titans as sleepers. You heard it here first.

11. New York Jets (2-2) - Rex Ryan is full of hot air, but that’s no surprise. What is surprising is that his team might be as well. 

12. Pittsburgh Steelers (2-2) – Tied with Browns and Bengals in AFC West with Big Ben injured. Upcoming games against Jags and Cardinals are just what they need. 

13. Atlanta Falcons (2-2) – Win against Eagles doesn’t look so hot. Neither does Sunday’s two point win over Seahawks.

14. Oakland Raiders (2-2) – Schizophrenic team needs defense to become consistent. Dangerous enough to win AFC West and then some. Could also finish 8-8 again.

15. New York Giants (3-1) - Despite significant injuries on defensive side of the ball, the G-Men have adjusted impressively.  

16. San Francisco 49ers (3-1) - They play Buccaneers and Lions next two weeks. That should even out the schedule, but it’s clear Jim Harbaugh is working some magic in the Bay Area.

17. Philadelphia Eagles (1-3) – Season is going down the drain, but NFC East isn’t looking good either. Things will come together soon starting this week for Eagles.

18. Chicago Bears (2-2) – Played Panthers a bit too close. Showdown with Lions this week will turn Bears season one way or the other.

19. Dallas Cowboys (2-2) - There’s absolutely no reason for the Cowboys to have lost Sunday. Horrible coaching and quarterback play will kill a team’s chances down the stretch.

20. Washington Redskins (3-1) – Do not be fooled by ridiculously easy schedule (including upcoming games with Panthers, Eagles). This is not even a .500 team.

21. Cleveland Browns (2-2) – If they don’t take advantage of easy front half of schedule, they’ll end up 5-11 on season.

22. Cincinnati Bengals (2-2) – Andy Dalton might or might not be the next Carson Palmer, but the defense absolutely ate the Bills for lunch on Sunday.

23. Kansas City Chiefs (1-3) – Great work by Matt Cassel in face of doubters and Vikings defense. Chiefs play winless Colts next week, so heading toward .500 could come soon.

24. Carolina Panthers (1-3) - Defensive woes are going to keep this powerful offense at bay all season.

25. Denver Broncos (1-3) - Von Miller with two more sacks in losing effort. That will be the same headline all season. 

26. Jacksonville Jaguars (1-3) – Gabbert showed strong signs of life on Sunday but there’s a long way to go. This team could contend in the AFC South but not with a rookie QB.

27. Arizona Cardinals (1-3) - Cardinals came close against Giants and should enjoy feasting on the Vikings’ carcass this weekend.

28. Minnesota Vikings (0-4) – Loss to Chiefs cements fact that Vikings are indeed as bad as their record. Hard to believe with Jared Allen, Adrian Peterson and company.

29. Indianapolis Colts (0-4) - Curtis Painter on the road tells you all you need to know. If not for superhuman efforts by Pierre Garcon, they would have looked horrible.

30. Miami Dolphins (0-4) – Sparano out in a few weeks. It won’t matter who they bring in.

31. Seattle Seahawks (1-3) - Tarvaris Jackson couldn’t get job done. Surprise anyone?

32. St. Louis Rams (0-4) - The team lost Danny Amendola. Not Johnny Unitas. Steve Spagnuolo has allowed the wheels to fall off of this one.

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The New York Jets and Baltimore Ravens clash in Week Four of the NFL season and while the teams have much in common there is a sense of rivalry fired by Jets head coach, and former Raven, Rex Ryan.

Both teams are 2-1 this season, have been regulars in the AFC playoffs in recent years but neither has made the Super Bowl since the Ravens triumph did following the 2000 season.

Each have outstanding players on defense – Ed Reed and Ray Lewis for Baltimore, Darrelle Revis for the Jets – but have some lingering question marks over their quarterbacks.

Ravens quarterback, 26-year-old Joe Flacco, and New York’s Mark Sanchez, two years his junior, have both proven to be worthy of their high ranking in the draft but neither have sealed their status by taking their team to the biggest game.

But it is on the sidelines where the tension between the two teams can be felt.

Ryan spent 10 years with the Ravens, ending as defensive co-ordinator, and it still rankles that current Ravens coach John Harbaugh pipped him to the top job at the club.

Although Ryan’s Jets lost to the Ravens last year he believes he has proven his worth in New York and also feels the need to spell that out.

“We have not beat them since I’ve been here, that’s for sure, but the fact of the matter is, we all said we were going to meet in the AFC championship game. Now, we haven’t won the AFC championship game, but we’ve got there two years in a row. The Ravens haven’t. So you can throw that one right back at them as well,” Ryan said earlier this week.

“I’ve gone to the playoffs every year, and I’ve gone to the championship game every year since I’ve been here as well. But who cares? This is what it is. They know I did a great job there for 10 years.”

It should be a gripping encounter in Baltimore on Sunday that will conclude a day which is expected to offer some tests for the NFL’s three undefeated teams.

The Buffalo Bills are the most surprising team at 3-0 and they will fancy their chances of extending their winning start to the season when they visit the Cincinnati Bengals (1-2).

The Detroit Lions (3-0) take on a Dallas Cowboys team that were boosted by their victory over the Washington Redskins on Monday while the Super Bowl champion Green Bay Packers will expect a fourth victory at Denver.

The New England Patriots, who suffered a shock defeat to Buffalo last week, face another tricky test on the road against an Oakland Raiders (2-1) team that is showing signs of being a playoff threat this season.

The Raiders have gone eight seasons without a winning record and will test the Patriots defense against the run in the first game between the two teams in three years.

Michael Vick’s rather bruising season for the Philadelphia Eagles (1-2) should continue at home to the San Francisco 49ers if he recovers from a hand injury in time.

The Eagles are smarting from their defeat to the New York Giants and desperate to avoid a third straight loss while the 49ers (2-1) are looking for another road win after last week’s 13-8 win at Cincinnati.

Reuters

Read More: 2011 nfl power rankings, 2011 nfl power rankings week 3

The second week of NFL action is in the books and we bring you our power rankings for Week 3. This week we saw the Baltimore Ravens flew too close to the sun and got burned. The Carolina Panthers and Cam Newton might just be legit but not legit enough to beat the Green Bay Packers. And in New England we were reminded of the Patriot power of the hoodie. Fear the hoodie. 

So here we go, SB Nation Arizona’s Week 3 NFL power rankings:

1. New England Patriots: When you drop 35 points on one of the better teams in the league, we don’t care if you are at home, you earned a top spot. Enjoy and act like you’ve been here before.

2. Green Bay Packers: The Packers got down early to the Panthers but they pulled out their Super Bowl rings and showed a young and developing team how to get it done. But at least Cam Newton and friends made it close (and covered the spread).

3. New Orleans Saints: The Saints looked very good beating the Bears and hung tight with the Packers in Week 1. Drew Brees is still slinging it so we’re gonna rank ‘em high.

4. Philadelphia Eagles: The Eagles lost Michael Vick to concussion (shocking) and lost a tight road game to Atlanta (not shocking).

5. New York Jets: The Jets are tough to rank because…feet!!

6. San Diego Chargers: The Chargers had a chance to keep things close in New England, but like so many others they fell victim to Hoodie Magic. How else do you explain this?

7. Baltimore Ravens: The Ravens went from annihilating their hated rivals to getting punked by Tennessee. They’re still good but not top five good.

8. Pittsburgh Steelers: Lost to the Ravens. Destroyed the Seahawks. We won’t be able to get our hands around this avian erratic team until we see them next week against….wait, the Colts? Nope, that’s not going to tell us anything either. We’ll rank them high on history for now until we see more evidence one way or another.

9. Chicago Bears: The Bears beat the Falcons but lost to the Saints. We think they will be good but can’t say quite yet at what. We also hope Jay Cutler has a good chiropractor and massage therapist.

10. Atlanta Falcons: The Falcons lost to the Bears but beat the Eagles. We think they will be a playoff team, don’t you?

11. Detroit Lions: Yes folks, the Lions might be for real this time.

12. Washington Redskins: The Redskins might not be for real, but they much more real than they were last year.

13. Houston Texans: Wins over the Colts and Dolphins won’t earn you much love but 2-0 is still undefeated.

14. Buffalo Bills: Are you starting to believe? We are. 

15. Dallas Cowboys: Bonus points for playing with broken ribs and a punctured lung. That’s worth at least two extra spots on the power rankings. Enjoy it!

16. New York Giants: Beat the Rams on Monday Night Football and showing some spunk. Good on you.

17. Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Josh Freeman deserves better and he’ll probably get it soon enough. 

18. Tennessee Titans: We don’t really think the Titans are this good but they did beat the Ravens and no other team can say that (yet).

19. Arizona Cardinals: The Cards could have been about five spots higher had they been able to generate (or prevent) two more points.

20. San Francisco 49ers: We are now at the point where we go from mediocre teams to bad teams. The 49ers are on that cusp.

21. St. Louis Rams: You were supposed to win the NFC West. Instead you are 0-2. Sorry, try again next year week.

22. Carolina Panthers: This team is going places, they just haven’t figured out how to get there yet. Expect to see them climb as the season moves on.

23. Jacksonville Jaguars: Did the Jaguars really think Luke McCown was going to get it done? We didn’t.

The rest of these teams are technically still in the NFL so technically we have to rank them. We don’t, however, have to say anything about them, so we won’t. If you are fan of one of these teams you have our sympathies.

24. Miami Dolphins

25. Oakland Raiders

26. Cincinnati Bengals 

27. Seattle Seahawks 

28. Cleveland Browns 

29. Minnesota Vikings 

30. Denver Broncos 

31. Indianapolis Colts 

32. Kansas City Chiefs