Chester Taylor

In many of the offensive players' minds, the Ravens made their first real commitment to Jamal Lewis on Sunday, giving the bruising running back 31 carries. But the Ravens' biggest show of faith in Lewis came in the offseason, when they chose to pursue Lewis more actively than Chester Taylor -- a decision that has become a hot topic for local fans and the national media. Bengals@Ravens Sunday, 1 p.m., Ch. 13, 1090 AM, 97.9 FM Line: Ravens by 3

Americans take big lead at Ryder Cup golf The Americans have built their biggest opening-day lead at the Ryder Cup in nearly three decades, losing only one match yesterday to go up 5 1/2 -2 1/2 over defending champion Europe in Louisville, Ky. Justin Leonard and Ryder Cup rookie Hunter Mahan won their matches. Phil Mickelson teamed with another rookie, Anthony Kim, to halve a morning match and win a full point in the afternoon. Ian Poulter and Justin Rose provided the only win for the Europeans, beating Steve Stricker and Ben Curtis, 4 and 2. Otherwise, the day belonged to the Americans, who had four outright wins and halved three other matches.

OFFENSE FB 39 Alan Ricard 34 Ovie Mughelli QB 7 Kyle Boller 10 Kordell Stewart 5 Josh Harris RB 31 Jamal Lewis 29 Chester Taylor 32 Musa Smith WR 85 Kevin Johnson 80 Randy Hymes 89 Travis Taylor 81 Devard Darling 87 Clarence Moore LT 75 Jonathan Ogden 77 Ethan Brooks LG 64 Edwin Mulitalo 72 Damion Cook C 61 Casey Rabach 72 Damion Cook 62 Mike Flynn (injured) RG 66 Bennie Anderson 72 Damion Cook RT 78 Orlando Brown 77 Ethan Brooks TE 86 Todd Heap 82 Terry Jones 44 Daniel Wilcox DEFENSE CB 21 Chris McAlister 24 Corey Fuller 38 Raymond Walls SS 20 Ed Reed 49 Chad Williams ILB 56 Ed Hartwell 53 T.J. Slaughter ILB 52 Ray Lewis 57 Bart Scott FS 47 Will Demps 27 Gerome Sapp OLB 55 Terrell Suggs 90 Cornell Brown 54 Roderick Green LE 98 Tony Weaver 93 Dwan Edwards NT 97 Kelly Gregg 92 Maake Kemoeatu 91 Aubrayo Franklin RE 94 Marques Douglas 95 Jarret Johnson OLB 96 Adalius Thomas 90 Cornell Brown CB 28 Gary Baxter 37 Deion Sanders SPECIALISTS KR 36 B.J. Sams 32 Musa Smith 29 Chester Taylor PR 36 B.J. Sams 37 Deion Sanders LS 59 Joe Maese 62 Mike Flynn H 15 Dave Zastudil 7 Kyle Boller P 15 Dave Zastudil K 3 Matt Stover 9 Wade Richey

Ups and downs for C. Taylor Chester Taylor (above), who left the Ravens as a free agent this year, became the first Minnesota running back in four years to rush for 1,000 yards in a season. Taylor, however, is wearing down from 265 carries, and left the game in Chicago - while it was still in doubt - with 99 rushing yards. That was the Ravens' big concern about Taylor in deciding to keep Jamal Lewis instead. Rushing reverse A week after Arizona ran the ball just six times - tying an NFL record low - the Cardinals pounded the Rams' soft defense 37 times for 137 rushing yards in a 34-20 rout.

Score: Ravens lead 17-7 Quarter: Second Situation: Ravens; ball, third-and-goal at the Giants' 8 Play: The Ravens are trying to regain the momentum after the Giants' Osi Umenyiora returned a fumble 50 yards for a touchdown. As Kyle Boller (7) drops back to pass, running back Chester Taylor (29) picks up blitzing safety Brent Alexander (26). Defensive end Lance Legree (70) applies pressure and Boller throws the ball just before he's hit by Legree. A leaping Clarence Moore (84) catches the ball over cornerback Terry Cousin (22)

Two years removed from being the NFL's most dominant running back, Jamal Lewis is struggling to become the most effective runner in the Ravens' backfield. The cutbacks have faded. The burst has disappeared. The explosive plays have fizzled. While Lewis has had trouble breaking through the line of scrimmage, backup Chester Taylor has broken off the biggest runs of the season. In Sunday's 16-3 win over the Cleveland Browns, Taylor's 92 yards overshadowed Lewis' total of 59. Five games into the season, Taylor has produced 5.8 yards per carry, nearly doubling Lewis' 3.0-yard average.

Good morning --Ozzie Guillen--You may be single-handedly bringing back the complete game. On air Television Pro hockey, Boston@Montreal, OLN, 7:30 Soccer, Lille OSC vs. Manchester Un., ESPN2, 2:30 ALL TIMES P.M. UNLESS OTHERWISE NOTED QUESTION OF THE DAY Should Chester Taylor take on the role of the Ravens' main running back? I believe that Jim Fassel should give Chester Taylor a chance, considering that Jamal Lewis is not performing as expected this season. Vince Bands Catonsville Absolutely.

It's a history thing Yesterday's 27-7 loss to the Texans dropped the Jaguars to 3-3, but it shouldn't have come as a surprise. The Texans were 4-4 against the Jaguars coming into the season, and knocked them out of a playoff spot with a Week 17 upset in 2004. Chester Taylor's day Could the Ravens use running back Chester Taylor? You bet. He had a 95-yard touchdown run for the Vikings and 169 rushing yards in a 31-13 upset of the Seahawks. But it's no sure thing that Taylor could have ignited the Ravens' tepid ground game.

As a Ravens executive, Phil Savage seemingly made all the right decisions. Now, in his first season as the Cleveland Browns' general manager, he is forcing the Ravens into a difficult one. The Ravens are evaluating the cost and consequences of their running back situation after the Browns signed backup Chester Taylor to a one-year offer sheet worth $3 million. That high offer, which indicates Taylor would compete for a starting job in Cleveland, would appear to be out of the Ravens' range for a backup, but team officials didn't dismiss the possibility of matching it to keep their restricted free agent.

Thumbs up: Receiver Ron Johnson has made at least one diving catch each practice. Yesterday morning, he made two and added a red-zone touchdown. Safety Will Demps had a couple of impressive stops, including one on a blitz behind the line of scrimmage. Thumbs down: Linebacker Shannon Taylor stripped Jamal Lewis of the ball. It was the second time Lewis has fumbled this training camp, and he is yet to take a real hit. Neither Chris Redman nor Jeff Blake produced a touchdown in their respective two-minute quarterback drills.

In many of the offensive players' minds, the Ravens made their first real commitment to Jamal Lewis on Sunday, giving the bruising running back 31 carries. But the Ravens' biggest show of faith in Lewis came in the offseason, when they chose to pursue Lewis more actively than Chester Taylor -- a decision that has become a hot topic for local fans and the national media. Bengals@Ravens Sunday, 1 p.m., Ch. 13, 1090 AM, 97.9 FM Line: Ravens by 3

The Ravens decided not to place the franchise tag on Jamal Lewis yesterday, a move that could signal the departure of the franchise's all-time leading rusher and a new direction for the team's running game. Lewis will become an unrestricted free agent March 3, joining a loaded running back market that includes Shaun Alexander, Edgerrin James, DeShaun Foster and Ahman Green. General manager Ozzie Newsome personally called Lewis to say the Ravens still will be "involved" in the negotiating process during free agency, but the former All-Pro thinks otherwise.

In a passive-aggressive tone that is now his midweek signature, Ravens running back Jamal Lewis discussed his usage as the primary back in Sunday's loss to the Cincinnati Bengals. While pleased with the 23 carries, Lewis could not help but point out the real reason why he felt he got the chance - and it has nothing to do with the health of his formerly hurt ankle. Backups Chester Taylor and Musa Smith were out with injuries. "It's not whether I'm back," said Lewis, who rushed for 113 yards against Cincinnati.

Despite the last-place Ravens being out of the playoff hunt, there is a race to watch in the final six games of their season. In the afterglow of Sunday's 16-13 win over the Pittsburgh Steelers, coach Brian Billick said the Ravens will continue to split the playing time at running back between starter Jamal Lewis and backup Chester Taylor. A decision needs to be made by the end of the season whether the Ravens will re-sign either Lewis or Taylor, both of whom are scheduled to be unrestricted free agents, as the team's featured back next season.

Sun columnist answers questions about the Ravens' win over the Steelers Johnny, Beverly Hills, Calif.: Hey Mike, what gives with the Ravens? They can't win for winning. The only thing this loss does is give false hope and Billick another escape act. C'mon, don't you think the Ravens with their anemic offense would have been thumped if the Steelers had a quarterback other than Maddox? I mean really, 16 points? Next we are going to hear them say that Boller is starting to show signs. Maybe they should come live here in beverly hills, where dreams do come true.

Halloween is always a good time for reckoning with your fantasy football team. The real teams have played enough games that you have a feel for who's good and who isn't. You know which guys will play and how much. You have something resembling confidence in the surprise stars, and you can't just shrug off the busts like you could in Week 3. That means it's time for fantasy contenders to shore up weaknesses and for mediocre teams to make a last stab at contending. I especially urge owners with good records to look for trade opportunities instead of standing pat. Complacency has been a bugaboo in some of my most disappointing seasons.

Key Play 0-0 Quarter First, 8:54 remaining Situation Ravens' ball, third-and-goal at the Browns' 3-yard line Play A Browns turnover on their first offensive play gave the Ravens the ball at the Cleveland 20-yard line. One pass and three runs later, the Ravens came out with two tight ends -- Todd Heap (86) on the left and Darnell Dinkins (87) on the right. Quarterback Anthony Wright (2) dropped back to pass and faked to running back Chester Taylor (29), while Heap and Dinkins ran crossing routes at the goal line.