How good is this year’s corps of Ravens wide receivers?

“Entering the 2012 season, the Ravens may have the best group of receivers they’ve ever seen,” wrote Jason Butt.

With a stable of depth at the position, combined with the Ravens looking to implement a faster tempo with the no-huddle offense, there’s a chance the team keeps six receivers.

But only four are “locks” to make the team, says the CBSSports.com scribe.

The first three are pretty much indisputable: Anquan Boldin, Torrey Smith and Jacoby Jones.

Boldin had another standout performance in practice yesterday, making catches with a cornerback draped on his back. “After one of them, a Ravens PR person predicted that Boldin could be in for nice yr,” tweeted Carroll County Times’ Matt Zenitz.

Smith is a burner, but has added more weapons to his game and is looking to become a more complete receiver. Jones is supposed to be what Lee Evans couldn’t become last year – a speedy outside complement to Smith to help keep defenses honest.

Usually columnists say the competition gets a little murky after those first three players, but Butt is the first I’ve seen to declare second-year receiver LaQuan Williams as the “lock” at No. 4.

“Rarely has Williams dropped a pass in training camp,” wrote Butt. “Not only that, but some of the passes Williams has caught have been nothing short of outstanding. During the NFL lockout, Williams was working at a paint store and thought about enlisting in the military. Now he’s got a good chance of entering the WR rotation on Sundays.”

Now here’s where the battle gets interesting, says Butt, with one or two open spots remaining for four “bubble” players.

Tandon Doss “should make the team again” despite a hamstring injury limiting his training camp.

Doss leaves one potential spot remaining, which Butt currently gives to rookie free agent Deonte Thompson over sixth-round choice Tommy Streeter. David Reed is then projected to go on either PUP or IR.

“Thompson has made the most of each opportunity so far and has continued to receive reps, primarily with the second team,” Butt explains. “He’s got excellent speed and is a fluid route-runner. Like most rookies, he just has to work on consistency. He can contribute on special teams in both coverage and return units, and he could be an emergency return specialist.

“Streeter has yet to prove he belongs on the roster. Yet, at 6-feet-5, 220 pounds, he has ideal size as a wideout. He also has blazing straight-ahead speed. Coach John Harbaugh has described Streeter as a project, and his potential could be too much to risk placing [him] on the practice squad.”

Lock No. 1: Anquan Boldin
Lock No. 2: Torrey Smith
Lock No. 3: Jacoby Jones
Lock No. 4: LaQuan Williams
Bubble No. 5: Tandon Doss
Bubble No. 6: Deonte Thompson
Bubble No. 7: Tommy Streeter
Bubble No. 8: David Reed

Pats To Go 16-0? Not If Ravens Have Anything To Say About It

Last month, CBSSports.com’s Pete Prisco made a bolddddd prediction: the New England Patriots will have a perfect 16-0 record in 2012.

Turns out, ESPN AFC East blogger James Walker saw Prisco at a Miami Dolphins practice this week and challenged the columnist’s projection.

“Point out a game they’re expected to lose,” Prisco responded to Walker.

So he did.

And the No. 1 team on his list to beat the Patriots? The Baltimore Ravens, of course, with a 60 percent chance of beating the Pats in an AFC championship rematch.

“Yes, the Ravens won’t have reigning NFL Defensive Player of the Year Terrell Suggs, who is out with an Achilles injury, ” Walker wrote. “But I can tell you from experience that Baltimore’s M&T Bank Stadium is one of the NFL’s toughest venues for road teams. The Patriots will need their “A” game to beat the Ravens in their home stadium.

“This may end up being the toughest game on New England’s schedule.”

Below is a list of all the teams Walker thinks could beat New England, and their percent chance of doing so:

• Pats at Ravens: 60 percent chance of winning
• Pats at Bills: 40 percent chance of winning
• Texans at Pats: 40 percent chance of winning
• Broncos at Pats: 30 percent chance of winning
• Pats at Jets: 30 percent chance of winning
• 49ers at Pats: 30 percent chance of winning

Carr Reminded About Value Of Punter

Undrafted rookie linebacker Nigel Carr is trying to make this Ravens roster.

He knows he has to prove his worth on special teams if he’s going to get that chance, so he’s going all-out on every play.

But he may have gone overboard in Tuesday’s practice when he rushed from the left side of the defensive line to attempt to block a Sam Koch punt.  

“Immediately afterward, [Special Teams Coordinator Jerry] Rosburg grabbed Carr and spoke to him for an extended period of time,” wrote Edward Lee.

Carr confirmed that Rosburg gave him a little talk about the value of the punter.

“He told me, ‘Don’t injure the kicker,’” Carr told Lee. “But that’s part of it. As a rookie, you try to do everything right. Even on the scout team, you know that everything counts. I just told him, ‘Yes, sir, won’t happen again.’ And I moved on with my practice.

“If they see you doing that on scout team, they’ll know you really want to be here and that you really want to be on the team. A person in my position, an undrafted guy, it’s going to be hard to make this 53-man roster. So I have to do everything right. It’s not as much the defense right now. It’s more about special teams, going out there and really being perfect on special teams. That’s what’s going to put my foot in the door.”

Allen, Berry Not Relinquishing Backup RB Role

Right now, analysts’ popular picks for the No. 2 and 3 running back spots are third-round pick Bernard Pierce and rookie free agent Bobby Rainey, respectively.

In the preseason opener in Atlanta, Allen gained just 9 yards on five carries and Berry gained 17 yards on seven. Meanwhile, Rainey put together one of the best performances of the night, churning out 143 all-purpose yards.

“Allen understands that his grip as the first tailback behind Rice on the team’s depth chart could be loosening,” Lee wrote.

But the second-year back isn’t giving up.

“Being a competitor, that’s the type of thing you want to see,” Allen said of battle to backup Rice. “You don’t want it to be given to you. You want to have to come out here and work because it’s going to make you better. So I think having guys like Bernard and Bobby and Damien Berry makes me try to step up my game every time I come out here on the practice field. Every time I’m in a game, every time I walk into the meeting room, every time I’m trying to study, I have to do better.”

Quick Hits

• @CSteele32: Great pic of the #Ravens @Navyathletics practice, taken by @RDPhotoOP. @raylewis52com @pkruger99 @Artj97 @TwentyER [Twitter]
• Bernard Pollard, who’s known to enjoy laying a hit or two on opponents, loved having a little fight in practice yesterday. … @Crushboy31: Today was the best day by far this camp!!! [Twitter]
• @GerrySandusky: Great moment at end of Ravens practice. Ray Lewis and Sherman Cypress, make-a-wish recipient. Dream come true. [Twitter]
• In case you missed the video footage, it’s a must-see … @TorreySmithWR: shoutouts to @MichaelOher for catching that punt today…thanks bro haha [BaltimoreRavens.com/Twitter]
• @jtuck9 [Justin Tucker]: Big thanks to outstanding punt returners @TheRealMtCody and @MichaelOher. Got to see The Campaign tonight after a little practice film [Twitter]
• @BryantMckinnie: Currently getting a massage, gotta make sure the body is feeling right.
• Steelers linebacker James Harrison underwent left knee surgery on Wednesday, clouding his chances of returning in time for the start of the regular season. [Associated Press]
• Former Ravens Head Coach Brian Billick was at the practice in Owings Mills, Md. yesterday as the FOX crew gets ready to broadcast Friday’s game against the Lions. Billick met up with Nestor Aparicio to discuss some of the keys for the Ravens this season. [WNST]
• Is the Ravens secondary the best in NFL? Brad Jackson discusses. [CSNBaltimore.com]

“Absolutely not, unless the moved him to defensive end and there’s a conflict of interest,” Art said with a laugh.

Joking aside, Art was very much hoping his brother would land in purple and black. Instead, he landed with a budding rival.

With the 21^st-overall pick in the 2012 NFL Draft, the New England Patriots – the team that beat Art and the Ravens in the AFC championship – traded up to snag Chandler.

“I was just happy to hear him go so high,” Art said. “Then I was like, ‘Wait, what team again?’ You could see me in the background on T.V. booing.” 

Almost instantly, a new competition was born between the brothers.

“I straight told him, ‘Week 3, get ready to get your butt kicked,’” Art said. “He didn’t say anything. He just smiled.”

Chandler has been following Art, the oldest of the three Jones brothers, for much of their life. When Art started wrestling, Chandler followed. When Art started playing football, Chandler did too.

The two played together for one year at Syracuse before Art was drafted in the fifth round in 2009.

Art in many ways paved the path for Chandler, and served as cheat sheet throughout the scouting process. He told him what questions teams would be asking, what to expect from the workouts, etc.

After the draft, Chandler thanked Art. But now it’s largely up to him to see if he will make the most of his potential.

While other players in the draft had bigger stats than Jones, he is a 6-foot-5, 265-pounder with loads of athletic upside.

“He’s kind of like a baby horse,” Art said. “When they’re first born, they have all the power and potential in the world, but just don’t know themselves yet. I think he’s just now starting to grow into his body and fill out and understand the game of football.”

Art said Chandler could one day reach the level of Pro Bowl pass rushers such as Chicago’s Julius Peppers or Dallas’ DeMarcus Ware.

The middle of the Jones brothers, Jon, is the Ultimate Fighting Championship Light Heavyweight Champion. Art helped him train for his latest title fight this spring in Albequerque.

Meanwhile, Art is trying to become a starter on the Ravens’ defensive line. He has a chance at the end position this year with the departure of Cory Redding to Indianapolis.

“We’re all going up right now, so I’m just happy,” Art said. “It’s just that good family rivalry that keeps us all hungry and wanting to strive for more.”

Remember when analysts were speculating the Ravens could make a move to nab receiver Mike Wallace from the Pittsburgh Steelers? You know, before Ozzie Newsome squashed the idea at the combine.

The same kind of logic is being applied to another scenario in which the New England Patriots could try to steal top cornerback Lardarius Webb from Baltimore.

Only in this scenario, there is a twist that could make the move more plausible. The Pats have not one, but two, late first-round picks.

“It could happen,” insists CSNBaltimore.com’s John Eisenberg.

Under the new CBA, the price for signing other teams’ top restricted free agents dropped significantly from a first- and third-round pick to just a first-rounder. Plus the new team would also have to offer a contract that the former team won’t match.

The Patriots own the 27th and 31st overall picks in the 2012 draft, and giving up that latter may not seem like too steep of a price for the “forward thinking” Bill Belichick. After all, Webb is a proven and young (26) commodity that could not only bolster one of the worst pass defenses from 2011, but could also hurt an AFC rival.

“Sounds like a pretty interesting idea to me, especially since the Patriots would still have a pick in the first round, the 27th overall,” wrote Eisenberg.

“The 31st overall pick in the NFL draft seldom generates a lot of conversation. It’s so far down in the first round that it’s almost a second-round pick.”

Newsome has expressed doubt that organizations would give up a first-round selection for another team’s tendered free agent because executives around the league covet draft picks.

That belief may be manifesting itself in decisions over the next couple of days. Ravens Insider Aaron Wilson reported yesterday that the Ravens are expected to assign a first-round tender to Webb, and Cary Williams, before the market opens Tuesday.

It’s a risky move, says Mike Florio of PFT.com, who believes the Ravens should do more than tender Webb to shield him from potential suitors.

“If I’m the New England Patriots, with the 31st overall pick, and there’s a first-round tender on Lardarius Webb, I’m happily giving up that 31st overall pick if I can get Webb. Front loaded contract, something the Ravens can’t or won’t match.

“The Ravens need to protect themselves against that now. They need to get Webb signed. He is on the rise and he is going to help that defense get better.”

Florio: Don’t Extend Joe Flacco

Agent Joe Linta has said his client is a top-5 quarterback based on total wins during his four-year career.

If that means Linta believes Joe Flacco should get top-5 money, Florio offers advice to both sides: wait one more year before trying to agree to a new contract.

“I think with Joe Flacco, the Ravens should use the promise of the kind of money he’s looking for as a way to get the absolute most out of him in 2012,” said Florio. “Let’s see what he does chasing that contract. Let’s see what he does with a chip on his shoulder.

“Worst-case scenario, you give him the franchise tag in 2013. Let him go out there and prove he’s an elite quarterback if that’s how he wants to be paid.”

The PFT.com scribe doesn’t mean his opinion to be a slight on Flacco. He calls himself a big Joe Flacco fan and believes the quarterback gets too little credit and too much criticism.

But Florio points out that two of the top quarterbacks in the league – Peyton Manning (twice) and Drew Brees – have finished out their contracts. He argues waiting another year will ultimately be better for both sides.

“It’s going to be good for him in the long run and it’s going to be good for the team in the long run,” Florio said. “Let him prove it and then pay him if he gets it done.

“I think under those circumstances he will prove it. I think under those circumstances the Ravens will be very happy to give him what he wants.”

Breaking sports news video. MLB, NFL, NBA, NHL highlights and more.

Birk Wants To Play For More Yearssss (Plural)

At the conclusion of each of the last two seasons, center Matt Birk has taken time to contemplate retirement.

This year, the wait for Birk’s decision ended at the combine when his agent announced Birk would like to return for another year.

Turns out, however, the 35-year-old unrestricted free agent thinks he can play beyond 2012.

A source “with knowledge of Birk’s thinking” told PFT.com that the 15-year veteran feels “great” and wants to play a couple more years. Birk has not yet been heard from on the topic.

Birk has expressed a strong interest in returning to the Ravens. Meanwhile, Newsome has said the Ravens will have a new center on the roster for 2012, but did not reveal whether that would be through the draft or free agency, or whether that new player would be a starter.

“[The Ravens have] been linked to Wisconsin’s Peter Konz, regarded as the best center in the 2012 draft, in numerous mock drafts,” wrote Eisenberg.

“If Birk and Konz are on the roster in 2012, Birk could mentor the younger player and pave the way for an eventual change in the middle of the line.”

Quick Hits

• AdamSchein: DeCosta: “We want Joe Flacco to finish his career in Baltimore” [Twitter]
• RavensInsider: According to U. Miami, Ravens area scout Joe Douglas and assistant offensive line coach Todd Washington attended the Pro Day workout [Twitter]
• RavensInsider: The Baltimore Ravens attended Louisville WR Josh Bellamy’s Pro Day workout, as did the Saints, Seahawks, Packers and Bengals. [Twitter]
• Apparently NBC Nightly News anchor Brian Williams reported, “The Baltimore Colts” released Peyton Manning. He never corrected himself, but the mistake was noted online. The network’s Luke Russert tweeted, “If Brian Williams says they’re the ‘Baltimore Colts’ they’re the Baltimore Colts.” [CSNBaltimore.com]

No, he’s not retiring in the wake of the Ravens’ painful 23-20 loss to the Patriots in the AFC championship.

“I’m hungry again. I’m thirsty again,” he said. “Is this my last time as a Raven? Absolutely not.”

This was Lewis’ 16th season of his decorated career. He’s the only player on the team that was part of the Ravens’ 2000 Super Bowl.

Before the game, there was speculation that he could call it quits if he got a second ring.

But after coming so close, yet not getting a chance to get back to that stage, Lewis wants another shot.

“Life, it offers too much,” he said. “Every time you step on this field is a true blessing, so you can just have an opportunity to do what we’re trying to do. We didn’t do it, we didn’t do it. That’s it.”

Lewis assumed his leadership position in a stunned Ravens locker room immediately.

After tying safety Bernard Pollard for a team-high 12 tackles, Lewis gave the postgame speech.

“We’ve got to keep moving, keep building, keep building, keep building,” Lewis said. “Remember this taste no matter how many times you go through it because when you finally get it, you appreciate it more.”

Linebacker Terrell Suggs stood next to Lewis as he told the media he wouldn’t retire. It was something Lewis didn’t talk about during the regular season, saying it would be unfair to look at that while he was playing.

Suggs was relieved to hear Lewis break the news.

“That makes me feel a lot better,” Suggs said. “There are things going through my mind right now. We all know the locker room is not going to look the same. It never does. We’re all disappointed we don’t have one more game for this team to play together.”

While Lewis will be back, the same cannot be guaranteed for center Matt Birk. The 14-year veteran, 35, pondered retirement after falling in the playoffs last year and ended up coming back.

After this year’s loss, Birk put out a similar statement.

“We’ll see. We’ll see,” he said. “This one will sting a little bit. I’ll just take time, get away for a little bit and make that decision with my family.”

Buried and attacked by media pundits all week leading up to the game – and after hearing some criticism from safety Ed Reed – Flacco delivered a performance that was certainly worthy of becoming AFC champion.

He went 22-of-36 for 306 yards, two touchdowns and one interception. It was good for a quarterback rating of 95.4.

Flacco outgunned the sure Hall of Fame quarterback opposite him, New England’s Tom Brady. Brady finished 22-of-36 for 239 yards and two interceptions (57.5).

But did Flacco prove anything Sunday night?

Not in his eyes, nor in the eyes of his teammates.

“I don’t care,” Flacco said. “Look at the film. If you look at the film, you see how I play. I pretty much play the same way every week. If you think I played better this week than other weeks, I think you’re wrong.

“I don’t know if I ever will prove anything, but it’s not really up to me. My job is to go out there and play and give us the best chance to win.”

Flacco did that and more. With the Ravens’ running game stuffed early on in the game, Flacco said Baltimore got into their passing attack a little earlier than expected.

“Needless to say, Joe Flacco showed that he is a top-5 quarterback in this league,” Pro Bowl running back Ray Rice said.

“It wasn’t me today. It was Joe Flacco. Joe Flacco drove us today. I would just appreciate that if some of the people who criticized him lay off him now. That’s my quarterback, we’re going to be here for a while.”

After a sluggish start, Flacco heated up in the second quarter, completing seven straight passes at one point for 123 yards, capped by a 6-yard touchdown pass on a roll out to tight end Dennis Pitta.

He converted on three third downs on the Ravens’ third-quarter touchdown drive, including a strike to wide receiver Torrey Smith that he spun off of for a 29-yard score.

The Ravens took over possession trailing by three points with one minute, 44 seconds remaining. Working completely out of the shotgun, Flacco completed five passes to drive the Ravens to the 14-yard line and would have had the game-winning touchdown had it not been dropped.

“He did what he had to do. He led our offense through that entire game,” wide receiver Lee Evans said.

Flacco has heard that he’s not “elite” throughout the season.

But his teammates have grown tired of the naysayers.

Flacco started the year saying he’s a “damn good quarterback” and, perhaps, he’ll end it with the media saying the same.

“He played his butt off,” said safety Bernard Pollard. “For the people that keep dogging him, if you aint never played this game, shut up.”

“I’ve talked for three years about how good Joe is,” center Matt Birk added. “For whatever reason, I don’t know. I don’t know that he can ever do enough until he wins a Super Bowl. That’s the Joe we know, that’s the Joe we see every day. It certainly wasn’t surprising by any means to us. I’m proud of him, proud of the way he played.”

Linebacker Ray Lewis said that “probably the most important thing we learned as a team” was that not one player had a doubt Flacco was going to lead them down the field in the final minutes.

“Joe came in here today and proved again that Joe Flacco, once again, is the quarterback to put us in position to go to a Super Bowl,” Lewis said. “He proved that. There’s nothing else for him to prove, from my side.”

After the game, Cundiff offered no excuses.

“It’s a kick I’ve kicked probably a thousand times in my career and I went out there and just didn’t convert,” Cundiff said. “That’s just the way things go. There’s really no excuse for it.”

The 32-yard, game-tying field goal sailed wide left with 11 seconds left in the game, and the New England Patriots rushed onto the field to celebrate a 23-20 victory and second AFC championship in the last five years.

A successful attempt would have likely sent the game to overtime and kept alive the Ravens’ hopes of making a Super Bowl, but Cundiff’s teammates emphasized that he is not to blame for the loss.

“As a man, not one play won or lost this game,” linebacker Ray Lewis said. “Could he have put us in a position to keep playing? Absolutely. But one play didn’t win or lose this game. There’s no one man that’s ever lost a game. We win as a team, we lose as a team.”

Teammates offered Cundiff encouragement after the game, but he said his biggest letdown was not giving them an opportunity to keep playing.

“I think the disappointment is letting my teammates down,” Cundiff said. “This is a team game, and to look at it and know that Ray has poured his heart out. He’s had a long career and you don’t know how many more years he has left, to let him down is pretty tough.”

Head Coach John Harbaugh, who was a special teams coordinator in Philadelphia for nine years, believes Cundiff will be able to rebound.

“I just told him it was going to be OK. He’s a great kicker. Everybody has a tough moment. All of us do. Billy will be fine.”

Earlier in the game, Cundiff had been successful on field-goal attempts of 39 and 20 yards.

Before the Ravens’ final drive, they had another chance in the fourth quarter to attempt a field goal to tie the game at 23. Baltimore was facing fourth-and-6 from the Patriots 33-yard line, but instead of attempting the 50-yard field goal, it opted to go for the first down.

Quarterback Joe Flacco ended up throwing an incomplete pass and New England took over possession, and Cundiff said he understood why John Harbaugh made the decision not to try the long field goal.

“You have to look at it as a statistical decision and take all of the emotion out of it,” Cundiff said. “If you look at my stats this year from 50-plus, I didn’t really give the coach a lot of confidence that I’m going to make that play.”

Cundiff made just one of six field-goal attempts from 50 yards or longer this year.

“This year I wasn’t as successful as I’d like to be from that range,” Cundiff said. “That probably made the decision for him pretty easy.”

As the Ravens head into the offseason, the sting of Cundiff’s fourth-quarter miss is likely to linger for a while, but he insists he will be able to move forward.

“I get paid to make field goals; I don’t get paid to miss field goals,” Cundiff said. “We’ll move on from this. It’s one of those things where it will strengthen me in the end.”

But with the swipe of a hand, Patriots cornerback Sterling Moore punched the ball out of Evans’ hands.

No touchdown.

The Ravens had one more chance to win, and a final chance to tie went wide. But after the game, Evans took credit for Baltimore’s 23-20 AFC championship loss in New England.

“The most disappointing part of all this is that I feel personally that I let everybody down,” Evans said. “This is the greatest team that I’ve been on and I feel that I let everybody down. It’s on my shoulders.”

In the minutes after the game, Evans said he wasn’t sure if he had finished the completion.

“I felt like I had it but it came out,” Evans said. “I don’t even really know how to put it in words.”

Quarterback Joe Flacco said he didn’t get a good look at the incompletion, but just saw his teammates momentarily celebrating. He was cheering himself before seeing the referee.

“I threw my hands up and started running that way,” Flacco said. “Stuff like that happens. You move on to the next play.”

While he doesn’t feel the win was taken from the Ravens, Head Coach John Harbaugh said he was disappointed the officials did not review the play.

“I tried to get [the officials'] attention and thought it would be looked at,” Harbaugh said. “I thought they would have at least looked at it. I was surprised that they didn’t look at it. Obviously, in that situation, I thought they would have looked at it.”

It was under two minutes (27 seconds), so any play can be automatically put under review. It’s the responsibility of the officials to determine if it’s close enough to take a second look.

“I thought you had to get two feet down or something like that,” offensive tackle Michael Oher said. “I don’t know what else you have to do. It looked like a touchdown to me.”

Harbaugh added that it’s up to the Ravens, despite no challenge, to make the play.

Flacco said he normally wouldn’t have thrown that pass, but he figured he could confuse the cornerback on a slant-go route.

“I figured we had a chance to get the corner and get lost there,” Flacco said. “That’s what I saw. Without his eyes on the ball, I just said, ‘I’m going to throw it right over his head and give Lee a chance to make a play.’”

Evans actually had his best game of a frustrating season leading up to the incompletion. He made a season-high three catches for 39 yards.

But drops have plagued Evans for the second half of his injury-truncated season. And it was a painful way to end his first postseason trip of his eight-year career.

“[The pass] hit me right where you would want to be hit,” Evans said. “It was a great pass by Joe, but it just was not completed by me. Nobody else can take the fall for that.”

Ryan Mink: The Ravens gave the Patriots a heck of a game. It was a classic AFC championship. But that was an absolute brutal, brutal way to lose. You cannot get any closer than that. A touchdown pass gets stripped out of Lee Evans’ hands, then Billy Cundiff misses a 32-yarder to send the game into overtime. Once again in the playoffs, the Ravens fell short of the Super Bowl. This one will sting for a long time.

Garrett Downing: The Ravens came close but it wasn’t enough to take down the Patriots on the road and return to the Super Bowl for the second time in franchise history. Quarterback Joe Flacco responded to a mountain of criticism this week by playing one of his best games of the season, but a missed field goal by Billy Cundiff at the end of the game concluded the Ravens season with a devastating loss. This one will sting for a long, long time.

Sarah Ellison: Joe Flacco can’t do this by himself. He hit receiver Lee Evans square in the numbers in the end zone, but he allowed a defender to strip it lose. Then they brought out kicker Billy Cundiff to kick a 32-yard field goal, but he shanks it wide left. Nobody will feel worse than those two men. Prior to the mistakes, the AFC’s top two seeds traded blows for 60 minutes, but the Ravens were just a touchdown catch short of a second Super Bowl trip in franchise history. The truth is that Baltimore played inspired football, but there are no moral victories in the AFC championship. It’s heart-breaking for a first-class organization.

Safety Ed Reed was the only player listed on Baltimore’s injury report all week after tweaking his ankle at the end of the win over Houston, but he is active and expected to start.

Cornerback Chris Carr is back in the lineup after being a healthy scratch against the Texans. With the Patriots’ pass-heavy offense, the Ravens want their full stable of defensive backs available, unlike last week where Carr was inactive in favor of keeping up an extra defensive lineman.

“They’re going to be running around and you’re going to need as many [defensive backs] as you can,” Defensive Coordinator Chuck Pagano said Thursday.

No starters are inactive for the Ravens, and the scratches are wide receiver Tandon Doss, cornerback Chykie Brown, running back Anthony Allen, linebackers Josh Bynes and Sergio Kindle, offensive lineman Justin Boren and nose tackle Brandon McKinney.

For the Patriots, tight end Aaron Hernandez is active after suffering an apparent concussion last week against Denver. He was questionable on the team’s final injury report.

The Patriots listed 13 other players as questionable on their final injury report, including wide receivers Wes Welker (knee) and Deion Branch (knee), safety Patrick Chung (knee) and guard Logan Mankins (knee), but all of them are active.

The one injury-related scratch for New England is backup right tackle Sebastian Vollmer, who is out with a back/foot injury.

The other inactives for the Patriots are quarterback Ryan Mallett, running backs Stevan Ridley and Shane Vereen, linebacker Gary Guyton, offensive lineman Donald Thomas and wide receiver Chad Ochocinco.

Ochocinco is inactive after reportedly flying to Florida earlier this week to attend his father’s funeral.

 
3 Matchups To Watch
 
CB Lardarius Webb vs. WR Wes Welker
Webb has developed into one of the conference’s top cornerbacks. Welker is arguably the AFC’s top wide receiver. Welker makes the Patriots offense tick, evidenced by his 122 receptions this season. Webb, who notched two interceptions last week against Houston, can play outside or inside with the diminutive Welker.
 
OLB Terrell Suggs vs. LT Matt Light
In terms of sacks, Suggs was shut out against Houston. But now that he doesn’t have to worry as much about the run, Suggs should be able to come stronger off the edge. He has a history with quarterback Tom Brady, and has had success against Light. Against him in the 2009 wild-card game, Suggs came around the edge for an early sack/strip.
 
S Bernard Pollard vs. TE Rob Gronkowski
Tight end Rob Gronkowski is the toughest matchup on the field at 6-foot-6, 265 pounds. It’s unclear who will be assigned to him, whether the Ravens will devote extra people to him or attempt to bracket him in a zone. But Gronkowski makes his living going up the seam, which is where Pollard lurks. The second-year player has 20 touchdowns this year, including three last week.
 
3 Questions To Answer
 
Can Flacco light it up?
Flacco has been at the middle of the weekly debate leading up to this game, with pundits and teammates both calling him out and backing him up. After facing tough defenses almost all year, Flacco has a chance to have a big day against New England’s 31st-ranked pass defense. Will he rise up and take the Ravens to the Super Bowl?
 
Can the Ravens pressure Brady?
Baltimore didn’t sack Houston rookie quarterback T.J. Yates. Whether they can stop Brady may come down to how much pressure they can put on him. Watch for defensive tackle Haloti Ngata to push the pocket up the middle. Baltimore could use big days from Paul Kruger and Pernell McPhee too.
 
What wins championships: offense or defense?
The Patriots have one of the NFL’s top offenses. The Ravens have one of the best defenses. It’s a classic tilt and should provide another case for the debate of which one wins championships. Baltimore dealt Brady his career-worst statistical postseason performance in their last meeting in 2009.
 
Team Rankings (Regular Season)
 
Ravens
Total Offense – 338.7 (15th)
Rush Offense – 124.8 (10th)
Pass Offense – 213.9 (19th)
Points Per Game – 23.6 (12th)
 
Total Defense – 288.9 (3rd)
Rush Defense – 92.6 (2nd)
Pass Defense – 196.3 (4th)
Points Per Game – 16.6 (3rd)
 
Patriots
Total Offense – 428.0 (2nd)
Rush Offense – 110.3 (20th)
Pass Offense – 317.8 (2nd)
Points Per Game – 32.1 (3rd)
 
Total Defense – 411.1 (31st)
Rush Defense – 117.1 (17th)
Pass Defense – 293.9 (31st)
Points Per Game – 21.4 (15th)