But in three of the Redskins' five losses, Portis carried fewer than 16 times in each contest. He has not eclipsed the 85-yard plateau in four of the team's defeats.
"In our losses, we haven't run the ball a lot, and we haven't been a balanced team," Portis said Tuesday. "When we were winning, we were a balanced team. Right now, we're really not balanced. We're not doing a lot on offense, and we're putting ourselves in position to where we can't run the ball or we can't stick with the run or we don't stick with the run."
While some might interpret Portis' comments as bordering on selfishness, Lewis said Portis hungers to help his team win.
"Maybe I'm a little biased," Lewis said. "He's from The U, so he has a big heart. He plays the game the way the game should be played. He's probably one of the exceptional backs in the game right now."
Making offenses become one-dimensional is the weekly objective of a Ravens defense that has surrendered the fewest rushing first downs (37) and the second-fewest rushing touchdowns (three). But the Ravens were battered by the Giants, who churned out 207 yards on the ground and featured Brandon Jacobs (73 yards and two touchdowns in the first half) and Ahmad Bradshaw (96 yards on nine carries) in a 30-10 win Nov. 16.
"Our first and foremost thing is to stop the run," defensive tackle Justin Bannan said. "We've done that pretty consistently the whole year except for one game. We've got to come out and play our game and focus on our technique and our fundamentals and let the chips fall where they may after that."
Despite the Ravens' reputation for taking opposing running backs out of the game via injury (see the Steelers' Rashard Mendenhall) or futility (see the Cincinnati Bengals' Corey Dillon), Portis said the Redskins should stick with their game plan of running the ball.
"I think running [the football] is a mind-set," Portis said. "When you're getting ready to run the ball, it boils down to toughness. You've got the position, you've got the attitude, you've got the idea that it's man-up time."
Baltimore Sun reporter Ken Murray contributed to this article.
REDSKINS (7-5) @ RAVENS (8-4)
Sunday, 8:15 p.m TV: Chs. 11, 4 Radio: 97.9 FM, 1090 AM
Line: Ravens by 5
