CLEVELAND — Because they played on Thanksgiving, the Baltimore Ravens enjoyed a long holiday weekend and got to rest last Sunday.

They can’t afford to take another one off.

Baltimore’s three losses this season have followed the same pattern. All of them have come on the road, all of them have come against a weaker opponent and all of them have come the week after an impressive win.

So don’t think for a second that a trip to Cleveland has the Ravens (8-3) feeling overconfident. They know the Browns (4-7) are always ready to brawl.

“If you were a fighter, this is the fighter you avoid at all costs because he is always going to fight you hard, and he is always going to fight you for the 12 rounds,” Ravens defensive end Terrell Suggs said. “If you look at just the matchups between the two teams in the past, they have always brought it against us. They have always had a special thing to play us.

“They are going to bring it. Our work is cut out for us.”

Tied atop the AFC North with Pittsburgh, the Ravens can’t afford any letdown against the Browns, who despite losing four of their past five games and falling back to their familiar spot at the bottom of the division, have the NFL’s top-ranked pass defense and are showing signs of improvement.

Cleveland doesn’t have playoff hopes, but nothing would ease the pain more than beating the Ravens, who have already shown a tendency to ease up against lesser teams.

Baltimore opened the season by blowing out Pittsburgh 35-7 and followed it with a loss in Week 2 at Tennessee. After thrashing Houston on Oct. 16, the Ravens were shocked in a Monday night game the next week by Jacksonville. Then, after Baltimore completed a season sweep by winning at Pittsburgh, the Ravens were beaten at Seattle the following week.

Coach John Harbaugh is confident his team knows better than to take anyone lightly. They’ve lived the “any given Sunday” — or Monday — cliché this season.

“Our guys, even in the games we haven’t played well and lost on the road, I don’t believe we had an emotional letdown,” he said. “We just have to play well. Every single team in this league is really good and I think the Browns are exceptionally good — much better than their record would indicate. We’ve always had tough games against them. Our guys understand the Browns, they understand the division rivalry and they understand what they’re getting into, so I don’t think there’s any possibility of any kind of emotional letdown.

“We respect everybody and we really respect the Browns.”

Baltimore may again be without linebacker Ray Lewis, the heart, soul and conscience of the Ravens’ nasty defense. Lewis missed practice this week with a toe injury that has kept him out of the previous two games. If Lewis can’t play, Jameel McClain will fill in for the third week in a row.

McClain had eight tackles in Baltimore’s recent win over San Francisco, but he’s not about to call himself Lewis’ replacement.

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

But just because Lewis could be out, that doesn’t make things any easier for Cleveland. Browns coach Pat Shurmur must design a game plan that accounts for all of the Ravens’ defensive stars.

“You’ll go into the game knowing this is a certain guy you need to block, this is a certain guy that you don’t want to wreck the game,” he said. “The challenge for them is they’ve got about three or four of them up front.”

For the Browns to pull an upset, they’ll need to be able to run the ball and stay out of obvious passing situations. It’s on those 2nd- and 3rd-and-long plays when the Ravens turn their pass rush loose with Suggs and Co. playing a diabolical game of “meet me at the quarterback.”

By TOM WITHERS,

Associated Press

Updated 12:12 AM Sunday, December 4, 2011

CLEVELAND — Because they played on Thanksgiving, the Baltimore Ravens enjoyed a long holiday weekend and got to rest last Sunday.

They can’t afford to take another one off.

Baltimore’s three losses this season have followed the same pattern. All of them have come on the road, all of them have come against a weaker opponent and all of them have come the week after an impressive win.

So don’t think for a second that a trip to Cleveland has the Ravens (8-3) feeling overconfident. They know the Browns (4-7) are always ready to brawl.

“If you were a fighter, this is the fighter you avoid at all costs because he is always going to fight you hard, and he is always going to fight you for the 12 rounds,” Ravens defensive end Terrell Suggs said. “If you look at just the matchups between the two teams in the past, they have always brought it against us. They have always had a special thing to play us.

“They are going to bring it. Our work is cut out for us.”

Tied atop the AFC North with Pittsburgh, the Ravens can’t afford any letdown against the Browns, who despite losing four of their past five games and falling back to their familiar spot at the bottom of the division, have the NFL’s top-ranked pass defense and are showing signs of improvement.

Cleveland doesn’t have playoff hopes, but nothing would ease the pain more than beating the Ravens, who have already shown a tendency to ease up against lesser teams.

Baltimore opened the season by blowing out Pittsburgh 35-7, and followed it with a loss in Week 2 at Tennessee. After thrashing Houston on Oct. 16, the Ravens were shocked in a Monday night game the next week by Jacksonville. Then, after Baltimore completed a season sweep by winning at Pittsburgh, the Ravens were beaten at Seattle the following week.

Coach John Harbaugh is confident his team knows better than to take anyone lightly. They’ve lived the “any given Sunday” — or Monday — cliche this season.

“Our guys, even in the games we haven’t played well and lost on the road, I don’t believe we had an emotional letdown,” he said. “We just have to play well. Every single team in this league is really good and I think the Browns are exceptionally good — much better than their record would indicate. We’ve always had tough games against them. Our guys understand the Browns, they understand the division rivalry and they understand what they’re getting into, so I don’t think there’s any possibility of any kind of emotional letdown.

“We respect everybody and we really respect the Browns.”

Baltimore may again be without linebacker Ray Lewis, the heart, soul and conscience of the Ravens’ nasty defense. Lewis missed practice this week with a toe injury that has kept him out of the previous two games. If Lewis can’t play, Jameel McClain will fill in for the third week in a row.

McClain had eight tackles in Baltimore’s recent win over San Francisco, but he’s not about to call himself Lewis’ replacement.

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

But just because Lewis could be out, that doesn’t make things any easier for Cleveland. Browns coach Pat Shurmur must design a game plan that accounts for all of the Ravens’ defensive stars.

“You’ll go into the game knowing this is a certain guy you need to block, this is a certain guy that you don’t want to wreck the game,” he said. “The challenge for them is they’ve got about three or four of them up front.”

For the Browns to pull an upset, they’ll need to be able to run the ball and stay out of obvious passing situations. It’s on those 2nd- and 3rd-and-long plays when the Ravens turn their pass rush loose with Suggs and Co. playing a diabolical game of “meet me at the quarterback.”

Baltimore leads the league with 38 sacks, including nine to tie a franchise record in the Ravens’ 16-6 win over the 49ers on Thanksgiving.

Browns quarterback Colt McCoy expects to be under pressure from the first snap until the last. He’s counting on Cleveland’s line to protect his back, front, side and whatever other direction the Ravens might be flying at him from.

“You have to trust your guys,” said McCoy, who threw three interceptions last season in his first matchup with Baltimore. “You have to trust your running backs. You have to trust your offensive line to pick up the protection and you have to trust your guys to get open. That’s how it is week to week. This week they are really good up front. They’ve pressured more than anybody we’ve seen. We’ve got a lot on our plate, a lot to handle, but we’re excited about the challenge.”

Peyton Hillis may be the one who can help the Browns most.

After missing five straight games with a hamstring injury, Hillis came back and gained 65 yards last week in a loss to Cincinnati. Hillis ran hard and with purpose, a positive sign that’s he’s trying to finish strong after being hurt and becoming a distraction this season.

Hillis had a breakout performance the first time he played Baltimore last year. He gashed the Ravens for 144 yards, the most by a back against their defense since 2005. However, the second time he faced them, Hillis, playing with broken ribs, gained just 35 yards.

“They’re a good defense,” Hillis said. “They’re big up front, their front seven is great and you really have to prepare well for ‘em if you’re going to run the ball on ‘em.”

The Ravens are expecting the Browns to feed them a heaping portion of Hillis.

“He’s a really aggressive runner,” Suggs said. “Everybody knows he is Peyton Hillis; he has the Madden cover. He likes to have good games against good defenses. I expect for the juggernaut to be up in there and try to run down some walls.”

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

It has been more than two weeks since Baltimore Ravens middle linebacker Ray Lewis has played a game because of an injured right toe, but no one needed the break more than the team’s 36-year-old defensive leader.

“The rest part is big,” Ravens coach John Harbaugh said Monday. “I’m hopeful. I think he’s got a real good chance (to play Sunday). We’ll just have to see how it goes.”

But Harbaugh made a point not to make any assurances of Lewis returning to face the Cleveland Browns this weekend.

“Ray is probably the guy that’s the furthest away (from returning), if you’re looking at all the guys,” Harbaugh told the team’s official website. “But then again, you never know. Ray has a sprained toe, a turf toe kind of thing, so those are a little more unpredictable.”

The Ravens (8-3) surprisingly have flourished without Lewis. The defense experienced its ups and downs during a 31-24 victory over the Cincinnati Bengals, but Baltimore had nine sacks and yielded just two field goals in turning back the San Francisco 49ers 16-6 on Thanksgiving.

“They were two huge wins in five days. You can’t say enough about it,” Ravens linebacker Jarret Johnson said. “It’s a tough thing to do. We played a really good game against the Niners, but we’re moving on. We need to get win No. 9, and we’re going to try and get it this week.”

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

BALTIMORE — John Harbaugh aggressively pumped his fist when Joe Flacco converted a big third-down throw. He jumped on the back of linebacker Jameel McClain as he ran off the field after a key sack in the fourth quarter, and he gave several of his players hugs after receiving the first of two celebratory Gatorade baths.

And when it was all over, when his Baltimore Ravens had turned a superb all-around effort into a 16-6 victory over the San Francisco 49ers in front of an announced Thanksgiving night crowd of 71,435 at M&T Bank Stadium, Harbaugh jogged across the field and pulled his younger brother by 15 months in for an embrace, and some kind words.

The first matchup of head-coaching brothers in NFL history went the way of John Harbaugh’s Ravens as they scored the game’s final 10 points to deliver Jim Harbaugh’s 49ers just their second loss and their first since Week 2.

Flacco’s eight-yard touchdown strike to second-year tight end Dennis Pitta on the first play of the fourth quarter broke a 6-6 deadlock, and was all an inspired Ravens defense would need. Playing a second straight game without middle linebacker and emotional leader Ray Lewis, the Ravens tied a franchise record with nine sacks of 49ers quarterback Alex Smith and held standout running back Frank Gore to 39 yards rushing.

Linebacker Terrell Suggs, who spoke during the week about how badly the players wanted to get the head coach the victory over his younger brother, had three sacks — all in the second half — and defensive end Cory Redding had a career-high 2 1/2 sacks.

The Ravens improved to 8-3 and gained sole possession of first place in the AFC North pending the Pittsburgh Steelers’ game against the Kansas City Chiefs on Sunday night. They are 6-0 at home and have won 16 of their last 17 at M&T Bank Stadium.

The Ravens’ lone touchdown drive was one of their finest all season as it covered 76 yards in 16 plays, and took up 7 minutes 34 seconds spanning the third and fourth quarters. Flacco (15 for 23 passing for 161 yards and a touchdown) was 4 for 4 for 34 yards and a touchdown on third down during the drive.

He hit Anquan Boldin for seven yards on third and six, Lee Evans for eight on third and seven, and Pitta for 11 on third and six before finding Pitta again on third and goal from the eight for a touchdown. It was the first of Pitta’s career.

The Ravens had a 6-3 lead heading into halftime, but that was erased when the 49ers opened the second half with a 13-play drive that lasted 7:36. A 10-yard sack by Terrell Suggs — the Ravens’ sixth of the night — forced San Francisco into a long field goal, but David Akers drilled it from 52 yards to tie the game and improve to 6 for 6 from 50 yards or beyond this season.

Both Harbaughs spent the week trying to divert attention off themselves and onto a matchup between two first-place teams. They weren’t very successful.

The story line dominated the couple of days leading into the game and the pregame activity Thursday night. When the two brothers met and embraced at midfield about an hour and a half before the game, they were swarmed by photographers and microphones. Perhaps made uncomfortable by the scene, their chat lasted only a couple of minutes before both Harbaughs headed upfield to be closer to their respective teams.

In Week 11, the San Francisco 49ers extended their win streak to eight games with another 23-7 home win over the Arizona Cardinals. With a primetime Thanksgiving Day game properly titled “HarBowl” against the Baltimore Ravens for Week 12 which is properly titled “HarBowl” for the battle between Jim and John Harbaugh, here are the top five fantasy performers from Week 11 and their prospects for success in Week 12.

San Francisco 49ers QB Alex Smith.
Wikimedia Commons

5. WR Michael Crabtree(notes) & K David Akers(notes): 12.00 points*

While he did not score this week, Crabtree finished the game with a season-high 120 yards on seven receptions. Despite only scoring one touchdown so far this season, Crabtree is the team’s consistent big-play threat, as he’s caught a pass of 20-plus yards in seven straight games. Even with his inaccurate game where he had three missed field goals, Akers has been one of the most reliable kickers this season and should get a few field goal tries against a tough Ravens defense.

Crabtree’s Week 12 projections: 5 receptions, 70 passing yards

Akers’ Week 12 projections: 2-for-3 FGs, 2 XPs

4. TE Vernon Davis(notes): 12.70 points

After a streak of poor performances, Davis has now had eight catches for 107 yards and two touchdowns in the past two games. While it seems like Davis is receiving more looks in the passing game, he draws a very tough matchup against a Ravens defense that has not allowed a touchdown to opposing tight ends this season. Davis should still be a key part of the passing game but will struggle to find the end zone this week.

Week 12 projections: 5 receptions, 65 passing yards

3. LB Patrick Willis(notes): 14.50 points

Great once again against the Cardinals, Willis now has 85 total tackles, two sacks, one interception, and four forced fumbles on the season. Up against a Ravens team that will likely feature Ray Rice(notes) running the ball at least 25 times in the game, Willis should once again have an opportunity for a huge game as one of the top IDP players in fantasy football.

Week 12 projections: 8 solo tackles, 4 assist tackles, 1 forced fumble

2. San Francisco 49ers team defense: 16.00 points

Led by the likes of Willis, Navorro Bowman(notes), and Donte Whitner(notes), the 49ers defense absolutely smothered John Skelton(notes) and Richard Bartel(notes). Taking away their main weapon in Larry Fitzgerald(notes) for most of the game, the 49ers defense only allowed seven points and forced three interceptions. Up against a Baltimore offense that has been decent all season, the elite 49ers defense will be a top 10 play once again this week.

Week 12 projections: 20 points allowed, 3 sacks, 1 interception, 1 fumble recovery

1. QB Alex Smith: 19.38 points

In his second straight game, Smith threw over 30 passes in the game and had over 240 passing yards in the 49ers win. Completing a season-low 52.6 percent of his passes against the Cardinals, Smith struggled in the first half before being more efficient in the second half. Up against a stingy Ravens defense, the 49ers will likely return back to their ground game and asking for more out of running backs Frank Gore(notes) and Kendall Hunter(notes).

Week 12 projections: 180 passing yards, 10 rushing yards, 1 touchdown pass, 1 interception, 3 times sacked

*Point totals determined through standard Yahoo! scoring structure; IDP scoring: Tackle solo – 1 point, Tackle assist – 0.5, Sack – 2, Interception – 3, Fumble Force – 2, Fumble Recovery – 2, Defensive Touchdown – 6, Safety – 2, Return touchdown – 6

Sources:

Arizona at San Francisco Box Score, Yahoo! Sports

Michael Crabtree Fantasy News, CBS Sports

Vernon Davis Fantasy News, CBS Sports

Patrick Willis Profile, Yahoo! Sports

Alex Smith Game Log, Yahoo! Sports

More from this contributor:

Five Waiver Wire IDP Pickups for Week 12: Fan’s Opinion

Free Agent Fantasy Stars for Week 12: Fan’s Opinion

Top 10 Scoring IDP Players from NFL Week 11: Fan’s Reaction

Fantasy Football 2011 Week11 Top Scorers by Position: Fan’s Review

Most Surprising Fantasy Players Out of Week 11: Fan’s Opinion

Austin Chang is a lifelong football fan, San Francisco 49ers supporter, and fantasy football player since 2005. Follow him on Twitter @_austinchang.

Note: This article was written by a Yahoo! contributor. Sign up here to start publishing your own sports content.

BALTIMORE (AP)—The Baltimore Ravens had just left the field after an
important 31-24 win over Cincinnati when the grounds crew at their home stadium
began putting down a Thanksgiving Day emblem on the artificial turf.

The Ravens won’t have long to celebrate their ascent into first place in the
AFC North.

Joe Flacco(notes) threw for 270 yards and two touchdowns, rookie Torrey Smith(notes) had
six catches for 165 yards, and the Ravens (7-3) held off a late charge by the
Bengals (6-4) to climb into a tie with Pittsburgh for the division lead.

Baltimore, however, owns the tiebreaker over the Steelers because it has
beaten Pittsburgh twice.

“We’re the master of our destiny,” linebacker Terrell Suggs(notes) said.

That’s certainly worth savoring, but the Ravens will play their second game
in five days on Thursday at home against San Francisco (9-1) in the NFL’s first
matchup of head coaches who are brothers.

Baltimore coach John Harbaugh was asked if he was thinking about facing Jim
Harbaugh on Thanksgiving.

“It’s two really good football teams going at it,” Harbaugh said. “I
think, for our parents, it’s good. But you look at what these players are going
to have to do to in a four-day period to get past this game, and to me that’s
the story.”

The Ravens would love to bask in the afterglow of their win over the
Bengals, but there’s just no time.

“It’s going to be quick,” said running back Ray Rice(notes), who ran for 104
yards and two touchdowns. “It’s so fast that you’re on to San Fran right now.
I’m going to try to watch some film on San Fran tonight to get the jump start.”

Unfortunately for the Bengals, they will have to wait a full week before
getting a chance to rebound from a disappointing defeat. Cincinnati trailed
31-14 early in the fourth quarter but drove to the Baltimore 7 in the final
minute before being denied its bid to complete the comeback.

One week earlier, the Bengals rallied from a 14-0 deficit before losing to
Pittsburgh.

“In my mind, we’re better than those teams,” tight end Jermaine Gresham(notes)
said. “They’re great teams and everything, but I think big mistakes killed (us)
in some areas. We just have to get better. We will get better.”

The need to play a full 60 minutes against elite competition was a constant
refrain in a quiet Cincinnati dressing room, where players lamented their
inability to compensate for untimely mistakes and voiced a sense that they could
perform at a higher level.

“It comes down to the fourth quarter,” said rookie quarterback Andy
Dalton(notes), who threw for 373 yards but was intercepted three times. “That’s how
every game’s been for us. We’ve got to start faster. We can’t wait around until
the end of the game to pick it up, come out and get back in it. It’s definitely
going to be a focus for us.”

Bengals defensive tackle Domata Peko(notes) added, “We played a good game today,
but we didn’t finish. Usually, we finish. We need to finish.”

Cincinnati next faces Cleveland at home Sunday.

Down 31-24, Cincinnati had a second-and-goal at the Baltimore 7 when Suggs
collared Dalton, who was called for intentional grounding. On fourth-and-goal,
Dalton was sacked by Pernell McPhee(notes).

The Bengals needed seven points because on the previous series, an apparent
9-yard touchdown pass from Dalton to Gresham was overturned by a replay that
determined the receiver didn’t hold onto the ball at the end of a juggling
catch. Cincinnati settled for a field goal with 5:32 remaining.

“When the receiver went to the ground, he had the ball in his right hand,”
referee Ron Winter said. “The ball touched the ground and his hand came off the
ball.”

Baltimore won despite playing without middle linebacker Ray Lewis(notes), who was
inactive with a toe injury. He had played in 57 straight games and hopes to
return for the 49ers.

Smith, whose 165 yards were third-most by a receiver in Ravens history,
might have had more if Adam Jones(notes) didn’t grab hold of Smith’s long dreadlocks at
the end of a 28-yard completion in the second quarter.

Jones was initially flagged for a horse-collar tackle, but officials
corrected themselves and did not mark off any yardage because it’s legal to
tackle a runner by pulling his hair.

“I thought I was going to score,” Smith said. “Next thing I know, I’m
getting pulled down by my dreads.”

Dalton went 24 for 45 with a touchdown. Cincinnati was without standout
rookie wide receiver A.J. Green(notes), who hurt his right knee a week earlier in a
loss to Pittsburgh.

But the Bengals gave Baltimore all it could handle.

“We’ve won six games to this point and we’ll win some more,” coach Marvin
Lewis said. “We’ve just got to circle the wagons, lick our wounds and go.”

NOTES: Former Ravens kicker Matt Stover(notes) was inducted into the team’s Ring of
Honor during a halftime ceremony. … Ravens LB Jarret Johnson(notes) made his 74th
consecutive start, breaking the franchise record previously held by Michael
McCrary and Jamie Sharper. … Baltimore has won seven straight at home and 15
of 16.

“Obviously I think that at the end we would have liked to have made it a little less exciting, if we could have,” Ravens Coach John Harbaugh said.

A 17-point, fourth-quarter lead all but disappeared for the Ravens as Dalton got the Bengals to the Baltimore 7-yard line in the game’s final minute, seeking a tying touchdown. But an intentional grounding call on Dalton pushed the Bengals backward and he was sacked on a fourth-down play from the 17-yard line.

“We just need to play better early so we don’t have to come back from behind at the end,” Dalton said.

Dalton threw for a touchdown and amassed 373 passing yards in his first game against the Ravens. But he also threw three interceptions and had a would-be touchdown pass in the fourth quarter overturned on an instant-replay review.

“We’ve got to play smarter,” Bengals Coach Marvin Lewis said. “We didn’t play smart enough today to win the football game. We had too many critical errors at critical times.”

The Ravens rebounded from a loss a week earlier at Seattle and improved their record to 7-3. They’re tied with Pittsburgh for first place but hold the tiebreaker advantage thanks to their two victories over the Steelers this season. They’re 3-0 against the Bengals, who dropped into third place with a record of 6-4, and Steelers. The Ravens and Bengals play in Cincinnati in the regular season finale.

“We have to go play and win,” Lewis said. “If we win, it [the playoff race] takes care of itself.”

The Ravens have stumbled this season against some of the less-imposing opponents on their schedule. But they have played their best in their biggest games, and that trend continued. Flacco threw touchdown passes to Smith and fellow wide receiver Anquan Boldin. Smith had six catches for 165 yards, and Rice ran for 104 yards and two touchdowns.

“We stumbled a little early but we kind of hit our stride by making big plays,” Flacco said. “Torrey came up huge and we were able to capitalize on a couple of those turnovers and make a couple of those big plays.”

Ray Lewis was on the Ravens’ inactive list because of a toe injury. He missed his first game since 2007, ending a string of 57 straight starts. That didn’t prevent Lewis, dressed in black sweat clothes and a black cap, from delivering his customary pregame motivational speech to his teammates on the field.

“We like him out there [on the field] better,” Harbaugh said.

The Bengals were without injured rookie wide receiver A.J. Green. Even so, they had the early lead after the first of running back Cedric Benson’s two rushing touchdowns. The Ravens managed only one first down and 27 yards of total offense in the first quarter, and some boos could be heard from the home crowd.

But the Ravens got second-quarter touchdowns on Flacco’s 35-yard pass to Boldin and a one-yard run by Rice. They might have had another touchdown late in the first half when Smith made a catch and sprinted toward the end zone but was tackled — legally, under NFL rules — by his long hair, which hangs out of the back of his helmet. Flacco threw an interception soon thereafter. The Bengals were thwarted on their final drive of the first half when Dalton lofted a pass into the end zone that was intercepted by Ravens safety Ed Reed.

The Ravens added to their lead with kicker Billy Cundiff’s third-quarter field goal. The Bengals had an immediate response with Benson’s three-yard touchdown run, but the Ravens restored their lead to 10 points in the final moments of the third quarter. Dalton threw a pass directly to Ravens rookie cornerback Jimmy Smith, who made the interception but had the ball knocked from his hand on his return as he neared the goal line. Referee Ron Winter was knocked down in the pileup of players trying to recover the fumble. Winter took a few seconds to get back to his feet after the play but continued to officiate. The Ravens’ Brendon Ayanbadejo recovered the fumble and Rice cashed in with a two-yard touchdown run.

Dalton’s third interception came on a pass on which Ravens cornerback Lardarius Webb made a diving catch. The Ravens scored on the next play on Flacco’s 38-yard pass to Torrey Smith. Dalton answered with a 49-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Andre Caldwell. But the Bengals got only a field goal with just more than 5¹/
₂ minutes to play after an apparent touchdown pass from Dalton to tight end Jermaine Gresham was nullified on a replay review. The officials ruled that Gresham lost possession of the ball as he tumbled to the ground.

OWINGS MILLS, Md. (AP) — Baltimore Ravens middle linebacker Ray Lewis isn’t expected to play in Sunday’s game against Cincinnati because of a toe injury that has prevented him from practicing all week.

Citing Lewis’ toughness, Ravens coach John Harbaugh refused to rule out the two-time NFL Defensive Player of the Year against the Bengals.

Lewis visited a South Florida specialist Thursday, who confirmed the damage to his toe suffered in a loss to the Seattle Seahawks.

Lewis has started 57 consecutive games, a streak dating back to December 2007. Lewis, 37, leads the Ravens with 68 tackles, also getting two sacks, one interception and two forced fumbles this season.

Copyright 2011 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

OWINGS MILLS, Md. (AP) — Baltimore Ravens middle linebacker Ray Lewis isn’t expected to play in Sunday’s game against Cincinnati because of a toe injury that has prevented him from practicing all week.

Citing Lewis’ toughness, Ravens coach John Harbaugh refused to rule out the two-time NFL Defensive Player of the Year against the Bengals.

Lewis visited a South Florida specialist Thursday, who confirmed the damage to his toe suffered in a loss to the Seattle Seahawks.

Lewis has started 57 consecutive games, a streak dating back to December 2007. Lewis, 37, leads the Ravens with 68 tackles, also getting two sacks, one interception and two forced fumbles this season.

Copyright 2011 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

From Baltimore — On Tuesdays, when the rest of the NFL takes a day off, the Baltimore Ravens go full pads.

Full iPads, that is.

Instead of asking their players to lug around massive three-ring binders and stacks of DVDs, the Ravens provide each with an iPad 2 and distribute that information electronically on a weekly basis.

“The guys really like doing it this way,” Coach John Harbaugh said. “They won’t flip through a playbook anymore. This is so much easier for them.”

Harbaugh said the Ravens and Tampa Bay are the only teams to do away with traditional playbooks at this point, but he expects every NFL franchise will make the switch in the near future. One of the many advantages: Players can download that week’s game plan Tuesday, typically their day off, rather than waiting to see it for the first time Wednesday.

“I take the iPad everywhere I go, so if something comes up I always have it with me,” Ravens linebacker Brendon Ayanbadejo said. “I could be at the grocery store, and if something pops in my mind I’ll just look in the iPad and it’s there for me.”

Nick Fusee, the team’s director of information technology, developed an application that uses specific tabs to separate the material, so players can quickly locate sections such as down-and-distance reports, personnel groups and formations, the perimeter attack, plays for the red zone and short-yardage situations and the like. For instance, the scouting report and game plan for the Ravens’ game against Arizona last month was 285 pages.

Harbaugh also keeps an ongoing motivational file, with additional information on historical or Biblical figures he refers to in his talks to the team. So if the players want to read more on the subject, they have that option.

The next version of the app will allow players to tap on the drawing of a play, making video of that play instantly appear. Fusee also envisions an animated playbook that would allow a user to draw a play with a finger, then hit “play” and watch it go.

Fusee’s main concern in developing the app was making sure the system was secure and that the information could not be obtained by anyone not with the Ravens. To activate his tablet, a player first has to enter a five-digit code. Then, a user name and password are required to launch the playbook app, and if those are entered incorrectly more than three times in a row, all the information in the app is destroyed.

The game plans come with “time bombs,” which erase that week’s information by midnight Sunday after the game. And Fusee has the ability to remotely erase the information on any of the 120 units, so even if the device winds up in the wrong hands, the information will not.

“If Ray Lewis loses his in a McDonald’s and somebody picks it up and walks away with it, I can click a button and remotely wipe it,” Fusee said. “Peace of mind.”

The tablets are collected on game day and returned to the players by the following afternoon, loaded with video of the next opponent. Only the video needs to be installed by the Ravens; everything else is downloaded by the players.

Megan McLaughlin, executive assistant to the coaches, handles the collecting and redistributing of the tablets. She said she is using about 5,000 fewer sheets of paper each week, paper that was then shredded at the end of each week.

At the moment, the tablets are used purely for football. The cameras on the units have been deactivated, and the players don’t have the capability to use the iPads for games, music or surfing the Web. That hasn’t stopped them from asking.

“Right now, in our first year of using them, that’s been the biggest thing, how to lock things down,” McLaughlin said. “It’s going to be one of those things where they keep trying to convince us, ‘Oh, we could use this. It would be beneficial.’ “

As it is, Baltimore players figure the iPads will help them swipe their way to more takeaways, and drag-and-drop their way to more sacks.

The goal is simple.

On Sundays, the Ravens want to play like — you guessed it — angry birds.

sam.farmer@latimes.com

twitter.com/latimesfarmer

BY TIM BOOTH

The Associated Press

SEATTLE — It’s seems like the perfect trap. Coming off an emotional and important victory, the Baltimore Ravens fly across the country to play a 2-6 team coming off a third straight loss.

Problem for the Ravens is it’s a situation they’ve faced and failed at twice this season.

The Ravens said all the right things this week about realizing the importance of today’s game at Seattle and how any benefits from their thrilling, last-second 23-20 win over Pittsburgh last week will be completely negated with a West Coast flop.

But the Ravens track record this season says the rare matchup against the struggling Seahawks could mean problems. All they have to do is look back to Week 2 at Tennessee and Week 7 at Jacksonville to see the mistakes.

“We have been riding an emotional high right now. Coming off those big wins, (the media) like to say we have that tendency of a letdown,” Baltimore running back Ray Rice said. “I think it’s time for us to be able to put the big games behind us and treat every game like it’s a big game.”

After routing Pittsburgh in its season opener, Baltimore followed up with a flop against the Titans. Five weeks later, the Ravens had another poor performance at Jacksonville a week after an impressive victory over Houston.

They are rare moments in the tenure of John Harbaugh. Since taking over in 2008, the Ravens have three losses against sub-.500 teams. Only one was later than the second week of the regular season, and it came three weeks ago against the Jaguars.

The fact two of those slip ups against losing teams happened this season, and with a home game waiting next week against division co-leader Cincinnati, is what’s causing the Ravens concern about this trip.

“It’s really easy to get ready for a team like Seattle because they’re very talented. I think they’ve lost a lot of close games and their record is not in any way indicative of the type of football team they are,” Harbaugh said. “We’ve had this experience already and so we know that those records don’t mean anything.”

Flacco spent most of the week deflecting the praise being heaped his way following his nearly flawless final drive last week against Pittsburgh, which ended with a 26-yard TD pass to rookie Torrey Smith with 8 seconds left that gave the Ravens a season sweep of their AFC North rivals. Flacco took the Ravens 92 yards in the final 21/2 minutes for the winning score.

“If we just dwell on that then the end is going to be nothing. We’re going to look back on it and say, ‘Who cares?’ because we lost a couple more games,” Flacco said. “But as long as we go and do our jobs the rest of the season I think we will be able to look at that as a big win.”

A win Sunday would give the Ravens their second 7-2 start in franchise history. The previous time came in 2006 when Baltimore finished 13-3 and had the second-best record in the AFC.

Seattle isn’t anywhere near thinking about 7-2 starts and 13-3 records. They’ve dropped their last three, scoring a combined 28 points in losses to Cleveland, Cincinnati and Dallas.

The Seahawks are proving talented enough to give better teams fits, as evident by the fact they’ve been within one score in the fourth quarter in five of their six losses. But that only highlights Seattle’s sometimes maddening inconsistency and seeming to always be playing from behind.

They are headaches that were expected with such a young team. That doesn’t make being 2-6 any easier to accept.

“It’s just been the performance level of our guys has just not been where it needs to be, you know? We haven’t taken care of the football as well as we need to. We haven’t gotten the ball as much as we need to,” Seahawks coach Pete Carroll said. “With our young guys up front, it’s been a process. As much as we have no patience about it, we have had to be patient as we watch them develop. It’s just been a fight. So, we’re getting along here.”

If there was a bright spot to take from last week’s loss in Dallas, it was the rediscovery of a running game. The Seahawks scraped the no-huddle approach that worked in an upset of the New York Giants last month — and subsequently sputtered — and ran for 162 yards against a Cowboys defense that was fourth in the league against the run. Marshawn Lynch topped 100 yards in the regular season for the first time in nearly three years, but Seattle couldn’t overcome three interceptions from Tarvaris Jackson.

Carroll said this week that Seattle’s ability to run is of paramount importance to how the rest of the team operates, no matter if it’s in a hurry-up offense or not. If they’re able to run against Ray Lewis, Haloti Ngata and the rest of the Ravens’ defense, it’ll be an impressive statement.

“We are in for a fight. What else can you ask for?” Jackson said. “We’re a young team, and we’re trying to show what we have, and put together a nice team here. So what better challenge is it to have to go against one of the better defenses in the league?”

——

Follow Tim Booth on Twitter at http://twitter.com/ByTimBooth

It’s seems like the perfect trap. Coming off an emotional and important victory, the Baltimore Ravens fly across the country to play a 2-6 team coming off a third straight loss.

Problem for the Ravens is it’s a situation they’ve faced and failed at twice this season.

The Ravens said all the right things this week about realizing the importance of Sunday’s game at Seattle and how any benefits from their thrilling, last-second 23-20 win over Pittsburgh last week will be completely negated with a West Coast flop.

But the Ravens track record this season says the rare matchup against the struggling Seahawks could mean problems. All they have to do is look back to Week 2 at Tennessee and Week 7 at Jacksonville to see the mistakes.

“We have been riding an emotional high right now. Coming off those big wins, (the media) like to say we have that tendency of a letdown,” Baltimore running back Ray Rice said. “I think it’s time for us to be able to put the big games behind us and treat every game like it’s a big game.”

After routing Pittsburgh in its season opener, Baltimore followed up with a flop against the Titans. Five weeks later, the Ravens had another poor performance at Jacksonville a week after an impressive victory over Houston.

They are rare moments in the tenure of John Harbaugh. Since taking over in 2008, the Ravens have three losses against sub-.500 teams. Only one was later than the second week of the regular season, and it came three weeks ago against the Jaguars.

The fact two of those slip ups against losing teams happened this season, and with a home game waiting next week against division co-leader Cincinnati, is what’s causing the Ravens concern about this trip.

“It’s really easy to get ready for a team like Seattle because they’re very talented. I think they’ve lost a lot of close games and their record is not in any way indicative of the type of football team they are,” Harbaugh said. “We’ve had this experience already and so we know that those records don’t mean anything.”

Flacco spent most of the week deflecting the praise being heaped his way following his nearly flawless final drive last week against Pittsburgh, which ended with a 26-yard TD pass to rookie Torrey Smith with 8 seconds left that gave the Ravens a season sweep of their AFC North rivals. Flacco took the Ravens 92 yards in the final 2½ minutes for the winning score.

“If we just dwell on that then the end is going to be nothing. We’re going to look back on it and say, ‘Who cares?’ because we lost a couple more games,” Flacco said. “But as long as we go and do our jobs the rest of the season I think we will be able to look at that as a big win.”

A win Sunday would give the Ravens their second 7-2 start in franchise history. The previous time came in 2006 when Baltimore finished 13-3 and had the second-best record in the AFC.

Seattle isn’t anywhere near thinking about 7-2 starts and 13-3 records. They’ve dropped their last three, scoring a combined 28 points in losses to Cleveland, Cincinnati and Dallas.

The Seahawks are proving talented enough to give better teams fits, as evident by the fact they’ve been within one score in the fourth quarter in five of their six losses. But that only highlights Seattle’s sometimes maddening inconsistency and seeming to always be playing from behind.

They are headaches that were expected with such a young team. That doesn’t make being 2-6 any easier to accept.

“It’s just been the performance level of our guys has just not been where it needs to be, you know? We haven’t taken care of the football as well as we need to. We haven’t gotten the ball as much as we need to,” Seahawks coach Pete Carroll said. “With our young guys up front, it’s been a process. As much as we have no patience about it, we have had to be patient as we watch them develop. It’s just been a fight. So, we’re getting along here.”

If there was a bright spot to take from last week’s loss in Dallas, it was the rediscovery of a running game. The Seahawks scraped the no-huddle approach that worked in an upset of the New York Giants last month — and subsequently sputtered — and ran for 162 yards against a Cowboys defense that was fourth in the league against the run. Marshawn Lynch topped 100 yards in the regular season for the first time in nearly three years, but Seattle couldn’t overcome three interceptions from Tarvaris Jackson.

Carroll said this week that Seattle’s ability to run is of paramount importance to how the rest of the team operates, no matter if it’s in a hurry-up offense or not. If they’re able to run against Ray Lewis, Haloti Ngata and the rest of the Ravens’ defense, it’ll be an impressive statement.

“We are in for a fight. What else can you ask for?” Jackson said. “We’re a young team, and we’re trying to show what we have, and put together a nice team here. So what better challenge is it to have to go against one of the better defenses in the league?”

___

Follow Tim Booth on Twitter at http://twitter.com/ByTimBooth