Cary Williams

The Ravens escaped their first meeting with the Cleveland Browns on Sept. 27 with a 23-16 win, and the game-winning touchdown was provided when cornerback Cary Williams jumped an out route run by wide receiver Travis Benjamin for an interception he returned 63 yards for a touchdown. This week, Williams recalled his perspective on the turning point of the game. What do you remember about that interception? "I just recognized the formation. Once I saw that and recognized the motion, then I knew it was going to be a play that I had seen before in previous games.

Jimmy Smith has prototypical size for the cornerback position. He has the speed to bump receivers, then trail them down the sideline. He has confidence to burn, too, which is always a good thing to have at that position. In his first two seasons with the Ravens, Smith showed occasional flashes, but he couldn't stay on the field long enough to live up to the lofty expectations that came with him being a first-round pick in the 2011 NFL draft. But as Smith enters his third season in the league, the expectations he soon will face might be even greater.

Cornerback Cary Williams and wide receiver Tandon Doss got into a heated argument during Monday's practice but they were separated before the altercation got physical. It all started when Williams and wide receiver Torrey Smith exchanged a few words, with Williams accusing Smith of holding him. Then Doss, who sat out the practice with a minor hamstring injury, began taunting Williams loudly from near the huddle. After Doss lobbed insults at Williams from about 10 yards away for a minute or two, he finally got under the cornerback's skin.

Look for the Cleveland Browns to make an early push during free agency to sign several of the Ravens defensive players. The Browns are $47 million under the salary cap and have privately showed interest in linebackers Dannell Ellerbe, Paul Kruger and cornerback Cary Williams. The Ravens won't make a hard push to sign Kruger and Williams, but they want Ellerbe back.There is speculation Ellerbe wants $6 million per season and the Ravens are prepared to offer $5 million. Ellerbe's durability will be an issue if and when he hits the market.

After a season in which he emerged as one of the Ravens' most pleasant surprises, cornerback Cary Williams has signed his second-round restricted free agent tender. The tender carries a $1.927 million salary for the 2012 season. Williams is the last Ravens' restricted free agent to have his contract situation settled. The Ravens reached an agreement with cornerback Lardarius Webb on a five-year, $50 million deal and linebacker Dannell Ellerbe signed his second-round tender last month.  The Ravens have explored a long-term contract extension with Williams, but there doesn't appear to be anything imminent on that front and the 27-year-old is focused on making a healthy return from February hip surgery to repair a torn labrum.

Until Sunday, Sam Koch had never thrown a pass in any football game he ever played — not in the NFL, not college, not high school. So when the Ravens punter threw — and completed — that first pass out of punt formation, it was one for the books. Koch's 13-yard pass play with gunner Cary Williams did not tilt the balance of the Ravens' 26-10 romp over the Miami Dolphins, but it set new standards for punters. First of all, the Ravens didn't call for a fake.

When opportunity wafted through the stale humidity of Thursday's preseason opener, second-year Ravens cornerback Cary Williams made sure to seize the moment. Playing three quarters against the Carolina Panthers out of necessity, Williams gave evidence the Ravens do, indeed, have depth at a position ravaged by injury this summer. He knocked down a second-quarter pass in the end zone from quarterback Jimmy Clausen, picked off the Carolina rookie in the third quarter and, helmet flying, made a jarring, waist tackle on Armanti Edwards later to deny a long completion.

Cary Williams wasn't sure he'd be able to play, much less start, in the Ravens' regular-season finale because of the concussion he sustained in the Christmas Eve win against the Cleveland Browns. “It was up in the air,” the cornerback conceded. “It depended on whether or not the doctors wanted to release me. But I definitely wanted to play and not let my teammates down this week.” That turned out to be a fortuitous decision as Williams led the defense with three pass breakups and tied for third with six tackles in the Ravens' 24-16 victory over the Cincinnati Bengals Sunday.

In one corner is a soft-spoken 27-year-old who was the biggest surprise of last year's training camp. Cary Williams, who went undrafted out of Division II Washburn and was later plucked from the Tennessee Titans' practice squad, started every game for the Ravens in 2011. In the other corner is a confident 2011 first-round pick whom some assumed would be handed Williams' job this summer. Jimmy Smith carried himself like a playful young man fresh out of college during his rookie season, but teammates say the 24-year-old has grown up a lot in the past year.

Ravens cornerback Cary Williams said he had faith that the “Calvin Johnson” rule would bail him out. Despite the initial ruling of a 9-yard touchdown grab by Cincinnati Bengals tight end Jermaine Gresham, Williams said he felt fairly certain that the touchdown would be overturned after Gresham lost possession of the football after Williams tackled him. “He did a good job of catching it,” Williams said. “It was what it was, but I knew that from the Detroit play, they couldn't give it to him because he didn't have control going all the way to the ground.

Aw, Joe, say it ain't so that your contract talks will drag on and you and the Ravens won't be able to reach a long-term agreement ("Flacco talks to begin at combine," Feb. 12). Baltimore loves you and we're so proud of your play for the last five years. You've shown us you're a blue collar Joe just like the rest of us - only with a lot more talent - and we don't want to believe you could hold the Ravens hostage for millions of dollars your great- grandchildren will never be able to spend.

NEW ORLEANS -- The vision has consumed some of them for almost a decade. During their most painful moments as Ravens, they wondered if it would ever happen, if they would ever experience a moment that their leader has spoken of so many times. Linebacker Ray Lewis is the only Ravens player qualified to talk about it. Twelve years ago, he stood on the field at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Fla., and lifted the Lombardi Trophy as confetti rained down on the Super Bowl champions.

While much of the focus in the offseason and preseason was on the negotiations for a long-term deal between the Ravens and quarterback Joe Flacco, cornerback Cary Williams also took a risk and declined a three-year, $15 million extension. But Williams said he never viewed his decision as a risk. “I just left it in God's hands,” he said after Friday's practice. “At the end of the day, I knew that God had brought me this far, and all of that hard work and preparation was going to come into play, and I just continued to keep my head down, continued to do what I'm normally doing, and I felt success would be there.

Each Wednesday, blogger Matt Vensel will highlight five statistics that really mean something for the Ravens. three -- touchdown passes Joe Flacco needs in the Super Bowl to tie the record for most in one postseason. Joe Flacco can win his first Super Bowl in 11 days. He can join elite company in the record books, too. With eight touchdown passes and zero interceptions, Flacco is in the middle of one of the greatest postseasons a quarterback has ever had, at least statistically speaking.

Outside linebacker Paul Kruger emerged as a dangerous pass rusher this season. Inside linebacker Dannell Ellerbe tapped into his potential as a versatile three-down defender, proving capable of chasing down running backs or blitzing quarterbacks. Cornerback Cary Williams played well while guarding opponents' top receivers after Lardarius Webb tore his anterior cruciate ligament. Although all three young defenders are in their prime and pivotal to the Ravens' bid to win the Super Bowl heading into Sunday's AFC championship game against the New England Patriots, this could be their final game playing for the AFC North champions.

For a big chunk of Sunday's AFC championship game, the New England Patriots dominated the 60 yards between their 20-yard line and the 20-yard line of the Ravens.   The Patriots refused to let the Ravens flip field position in the first half and spent much of it entrenched in Ravens territory. But when the Patriots crossed that 20-yard line, the Ravens, as they have done all season, protected the red zone with a barricade of bodies.   The Patriots scored just one touchdown on three red-zone trips in the first half and took a 13-7 lead into halftime.

Despite Ravens coach John Harbaugh's admission that Cary Williams hasn't been cleared to play, rookie Jimmy Smith said he thinks Williams will start Sunday against the Cincinnati Bengals. The absence of Williams, who suffered a concussion in last Saturday's win against the Cleveland Browns, would pave the way for Smith, the organization's first-round pick in April, to make his second start in the last three games. But Smith said starting in place of Williams isn't on his mind. “I didn't even think about it, and I don't think that's even going to be the case,” Smith said after Friday's practice.

In the minds of many, the Ravens are considered underdogs to beat the Denver Broncos on Saturday and advance to the AFC championship game. That label doesn't sit well with the players. “That's fine,” cornerback Cary Williams said sarcastically after Tuesday's practice. “We appreciate it. We love that.” “Nobody on the outside dictates how we play on the inside,” inside linebacker Ray Lewis added. “Nobody controls what our emotions are. I don't read it good or bad because you can't.

With zero touchdown passes, one interception and three sacks, quarterback Andrew Luck finished with a 59.8 passer rating in the Indianapolis Colts' 24-9 loss to the Ravens in Sunday's AFC Wildcard playoff game. But the top overall pick in the NFL draft in April impressed the Ravens defensive players with his ability to scramble, which he used three times to gain first downs. “He's amazing. He was keeping plays alive,” cornerback Corey Graham said. “He looked like Big Ben [Roethlisberger of the Pittsburgh Steelers]