Ravens to rely on defense, fan hatred

By Darrell Laurant  |   Thursday, January 11, 2007  |  Comments( 1 )

Baltimore Ravens
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When the Indianapolis Colts and Baltimore Ravens meet Saturday (4:30 p.m.) in the second round of the playoffs, it will match the NFL's best offensive team (Indy) against its most formidable defense.

And there's more. To say that M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore will be a hostile environment for the visiting Colts is a huge understatement. It will be similar to scheduling a bar mitzvah in Tehran.

Back in 1984, Robert Irsay's Colts slipped away from Baltimore in the middle of a March night, leaving Baltimoreans to wake up the next morning without a football team. That was a long time ago, but the former Colts fans haven't forgotten being jilted for what they consider to be a lesser city -- and Indianapolis has lost two out of three games it has played at the scene of the crime since.

The Colts beat Kansas City last week, 23-8, holding star Chiefs RB Larry Johnson to 32 yards. Yet although that was something of a surprise, since Indy ranked last in run defense going in, you can still expect Brian Billick to try and establish the ground game early with Jamal Lewis.

Running Lewis a lot is supposed to keep Indy's two smallish but ferocious defensive ends, Robert Mathis and Dwight Freeney, more or less out of the game. Freeney has been hampered by injuries this season, but registered a pair of sacks last weekend.

Nevertheless, establishing a ground attack is a must for the Ravens. At this stage of his career, Baltimore QB Steve McNair is still a smart leader who makes good decisions and can run when necessary, but is no longer the kind of passer who can throw his team out of a deep hole (even though Colt secondary starters Bob Sanders and Nick Harper will be playing hurt).

Meanwhile, Peyton Manning led the league in passer rating and touchdown passes in 2006, so why did it seem like he had an off-year? Perhaps because the veteran's otherworldly calm at the line of scrimmage, running through all his options like a fast food customer scanning the dollar menu, began to erode somewhat. His previously formidable line betrayed him a few times, and he threw three interceptions against the Chiefs.

The underneath routes will be a particular challenge for Manning on Saturday because Raven linebackers Ray Lewis, Adalius Thomas and Bart Scott are probably the top trio in the league. The defensive book on Manning is always to keep him from getting comfortable, and the Ravens will come at him with just about everyone in the defensive lineup from time to time.

The intangibles are probably about even. Baltimore has fan hatred for Indianapolis and the mystique of its malevolent defense going for it. With the Colts, rapidly getting the reputation as big-game busts, there's a strong sense that this has to be the year, since some of the key cogs in the offense are growing old.

Baltimore is 13-3, Indianapolis 13-4. Get ready to rumble.

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