"Cam challenged us today to make the defense be the second best at running to the ball," Smith said. "We're going to do that, and the offense is going to hustle and make plays."
The Ravens will use the no-huddle offense as part of their package. It won't be used just in the last two minutes of a game.
The Ravens will use it just like Indianapolis and New England. They want to attack and not allow opposing defenses to get their situational personnel on the field. Many teams have used this tactic against the Ravens.
This is where the loss of McNair might hurt. As a 13-year veteran, he had seen just about every defensive coverage in the NFL.
He was good at reading and finding the check-down receivers. Boller has always been too robotic and struggled inside the opponents' 20-yard line, where he has to make quicker decisions.
Smith is in only his second year.
"I think they're doing a nice job," Harbaugh said of his two quarterbacks. "I think there's a lot on their plates right now. The thing I've been impressed with, and we talked about this last night, is how they have been able to operate the offense.
"That's because we've done a lot of no-huddle drills. Cam calls them thunder drills. They've operated very quickly, and I think they've pressured our defense a little bit."
Right now, that's all that can be expected. But Smith says there is more to come.
"The thing I most appreciate about Cam is he's going to be a man at all times," Smith said. "When I say that, there are going to be things he's going to say to you that you're going to have to take into consideration, and there are also things you're going to say to him that's he's going to be willing to listen to. Not to say that anybody last year - Rick Neuheisel, Jedd Fisch, Brian Billick - that they didn't listen to us because they did. This year it's more of an emphasis to let us know that our opinion counts."
mike.preston@baltsun.com
