As the 6-3 Ravens and 8-1 Giants battle it out in Giants Stadium today, I’ll be blogging live from my sofa in Cockeysville, providing you with updates and commentary. Log on to bthesite.com throughout the game for my two cents and rants and raves from fellow b readers. Feel free to let your voice be heard, too.

——4th Quarter:
3:58: CBS just gave us an interesting stat: Before today, the Ravens hadn’t allowed over 200 yards on the ground since 1997. I think that pretty much sums up why the Giants were able to come up on top today.

3:53: I like the Giants are still continuing to throw the ball and trying to move the chains. That’s how you should run out the clock in a game like this.

3:49: Game over, folks. More or less.

3:46: Great play by Joe Flacco and Todd Heap to get the fourth-down conversion and keep the Ravens’ hopes alive for a little bit longer.

3:40: Not only have the Ravens had a rough go of it on the scoreboard, they’re also getting banged up. McGahee is gone, Mason looked like he reinjured his shoulder and Terry is limping around out there. Let’s just hope they can get out of this game without more injuries.

3:37: “I’m looking good and I know it.” If you’re watching the game on TV, you know what I’m talking about.

3:30: Wow, Ahmad Bradshaw is one fast dude. And he made Ray Lewis look silly when he cut back from left to right and rushed 77 yards downfield. The Ravens are getting gouged on the ground right now. Now Bradshaw is closing in on 100 yards with Jacobs on the sideline. The Ravens hold. Giants 30, Ravens 10.

——3rd Quarter:
3:22: It’s never a recipe for success when Joe Flacco has three times as many rushing yards as Willis McGahee.

3:18: Uh-oh. That could do it. Aaron Ross’s interception return for a touchdown puts the Ravens in a big hole when they were driving to make this a one-score game. It wasn’t Flacco’s fault. The ball bounced off the normally sure-handed Mason and went right to Ross, who did the rest. Giants 27, Ravens 10.

3:17: The Ravens have been infinitely better on third down this quarter, which is allowing them to move the ball and keep the ball out of Eli Manning’s hands.

3:12: The officials got that call right. the ball was clearly rolling around in Rolle’s hands before hitting the turf. The pace of this game has slowed down to a crawl, by the way. That favors the Ravens right now.

3:00: Wow. Weird play. Nice play by the offensive line to pick up the all-out blitz, and nice play by Flacco to avoid the rushers who got threw and find Le’Ron McClain WIDE open for the touchdown. The Ravens are back in this thing. Giants 20, Ravens 10.

2:55: No one was within of 10 yards of Derrick Mason on that play. The Ravens are in the red zone again. They need to come away with points here, preferably a touchdown. Two weeks ago they struggled in the red zone. Last week against the Texans, they were excellent. This week, back to mediocrity…

2:50: Can we officially make Flacco’s nickname “White Lightning?” Can you think of anything better?

2:46: Nice blitz call by the Rex Ryan to overload the right side of the Giants’ line and force the Giants to punt. Let’s see if the Ravens can get something going on offense.

——2nd Quarter:
2:27: I know Ray Lewis is a great player, and a great leader, and a passionate guy, but he shouldn’t be celebrating an interception when he’s losing by 17 points. Just saying.

2:25: It’s pretty bad when Eli Manning outsmarts you. It’s even worse when he does it twice.

2:20: Flacco has thrown his first interception in a month. He threw it into tight coverage and he threw it behind Mason, too. Still, it was a good run by Flacco, going over four games without throwing a pick. It’s just been one of those days for the Ravens…

2:15: Improbably, the Ravens have a chance to make this a two-score game before the end of the half. Wouldn’t that be something considering the way the bounces have gone and how thoroughly they’ve been dominated?

2:05: In retrospect, the Ravens offense actually hasn’t been terrible. They’ve been able to move the ball, especially through the air, but they haven’t been able to come through on third down. You can pin this one on the defense. The CBS announcers said that Flacco’s arm is a gift, which was kind of creepy. Hey, the Ravens are on the board! Giants 20, Ravens 3.

2:04: Oh yeah, the Blast started their 08-09 season this weekend. We can talk about that, too.

2:03: So, who wants to talk about the Orioles?

1:56: This is getting ugly, folks. The Ravens are just getting beaten in pretty much every phase of the game. I guess the Ravens are pretenders, at least on this day. Giants 20, Ravens 0.

1:54: Thanks for coming, Fabian!

1:50: Jacobs trotted off to the Giants locker room. That’s bad news for the Giants. But with Derrick Ward in the lineup, the Giants aren’t missing a beat.

1:45: If the Ravens want to get back into this game, it’s going to have to rely on the arm of Joe Flacco and force the Giants to throw the ball. It’s obvious the Ravens are getting manhandled at the line of scrimmage on both sides of the ball. Of course, that’s all easier said than done. Look for some trickeration on offense, too.

——1st Quarter:
1:36: Jacobs is an animal. Wouldn’t he look nice in a Ravens uniform? I know you probably don’t want to think about that right now as he rushes into the end zone for another touchdown, but I think he’d be the running back of Baltimore fans’ dreams. Giants 13, Ravens 0.

1:33: Bad break for the Ravens. Fabian Washington grabbed a tipped ball for the interception, but Justin Bannan was offsides, negating the play. If the Giants score here, that could turn out to be a big mistake by Bannan, who has filled in admirably for the injured Kelly Gregg this season.

1:29: What a turnaround is right! Just when it looked the Ravens were going to tack on three points, Stover’s kick is blocked and now the defense will be forced to defense a shortened field. Needless to say, this is not how John Harbaugh want his team to start out this game.

1:27: This is a nice drive by the offense to settle the team down and give the defense a chance to regroup on the sidelines. All these penalties help, of course. My question is, where was the passing game on the Ravens’ first drive?

1:21: I haven’t seen this many yellow bandannas in such a short amount of time since that time I was at the Latin Kings’ annual member’s convention last April.

1:16: I know it’s early, but Jacobs had 52 rushing yards on the Giants’ opening scoring drive. That means Baltimore’s streak of not allowing a 100-yard rusher could come to an end today.

1:10: Strength vs. strength? Didn’t look like it on that drive. If the Ravens don’t buck this trend, it’s going to be a long afternoon for the Ravens. Giants 7, Ravens 0.

1:07: I’m pretty sure that 36-yard Brandon Jacobs run was the longest the Ravens have allowed all season. It was also the second 20-plus-yard run they’ve allowed.

1:04: That was a real cautious first series there for the Ravens. It looked like they were showing way too much respect for the Giants. I’m not sure that’s the kind of message you want to send at the start of such a big game.

——Pregame:
12:58: Starting in a few minutes, we’re going to who the 2008 Ravens really are this season: contenders or pretenders. The defending champion Giants can do it all, and they’re one of the few teams in the NFL that can challenge the Ravens supremacy in the trenches. This should be an interesting afternoon. Any predictions? In Friday’s paper, I predicted the Giants to win 24-7. Tell me why I’m crazy.

12:45: Ravens all-everything wide receiver Derrick Mason (dislocated shoulder) will play today, which should come as a huge relief to Joe Flacco. It’s unclear, though, how effective Flacco’s favorite target will be. Mason is a tough guy, though, so I don’t expect a significant drop-off in his play.

Right tackle Willie Anderson (ankle) will not play today. Adam Terry will start in his place. Also inactive for Baltimore are receivers Terrance Copper and Marcus Smith, tight end Daniel Wilcox, cornerback Evan Oglesby, linebacker Antwan Barnes’ and defensive tackle Lamar Divens. Todd Bouman is the emergency QB.

The Giants are missing anyone of significance, unless you count a kicker.

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