It’s only the seventh week of a relatively young National Football League season. But the 2-3 Ravens are faced with a must-win situation this weekend when they travel to Miami to take on another team that has exceeded expectations in 2008: the Dolphins.

To be fair, the must-win nature of Sunday’s game should be placed under a different context from what most usually expect. Read the rest of this entry »

Facing a rugged Baltimore Ravens defense that still conjures unpleasant memories, Kerry Collins trotted onto the field needing to mount an 80-yard touchdown drive to keep the Tennessee Titans unbeaten.

His first big play was to get hit in the helmet. Soon after that, Collins threw an 11-yard touchdown pass to Alge Crumpler with 1:56 left to rally Tennessee to a 13-10 victory Sunday. Read the rest of this entry »

From today’s b, the paper

1. ‘Blindness’
What would you do if you, along with the population of an entire city, went blind? Check out “Blindness,” a psychological thriller about the fragility of mankind, and maybe you’ll find out, based on the Jose Saramago novel. Opens Friday. {TIM WONG, B}
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If only they played paper football.

Heading into the season, the Cleveland Browns were anointed by many pundits (not me) as the team to beat in the AFC North. Led by two Ravens castoffs — nondescript quarterback Derek Anderson and a resurgent Jamal Lewis — the Browns had surpassed all expectations in 2007, going 10-6 and falling just short of a playoff berth.

The Browns signed speedy wideout Donte Stallworth in the offseason, adding more offensive firepower to a team that scored 25.1 points a game in ’07. They traded for defensive tackles Shaun Rogers and Corey Williams to fortify the shaky run defense — their Achilles’ heel. On paper, the Browns looked like a formidable foe, one poised to return to the playoffs for the first time since 2002.

Unfortunately for the 0-2 Browns, football games are not played on paper. Read the rest of this entry »

From today’s b, the paper

Feel the noise

1. The Baltimore Music Conference will take over Charm City with 150 musical acts (including NYC’s The Bathing Boy) performing during the four-day event, Wednesday-Saturday, at various venues. Seminars, workshops, demonstrations and more are available for music lovers. It all culminates with an outdoor festival Saturday at Rash Field. bmcon.org. {BRIAN KRISTA, B} Read the rest of this entry »

From today’s b, the paper:

Keep it simple: Offensive coordinator Cam Cameron kept the play-calling pretty basic in Week 1, asking rookie quarterback Joe Flacco to make short throws to his wide receivers and dump-offs to his running backs. As a result, Flacco was able to avoid costly turnovers, and the Ravens were able to win the field-position battle — and the football game.

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From today’s b the paper…

Woah. Easy there, Baltimore. Take a seat, take a deep breath and take a sobering trip back to reality.

The whole city is abuzz in the aftermath of the Ravens’ semi-shocking 17-10 victory over the Cincinnati Bengals in Sunday’s season opener. And the Ravens faithful have every right to be excited about the team’s performance. Read the rest of this entry »