Duane Starks

The doors officially opened at 1 p.m. By then, Michaels Eighth Avenue was more than half full. And the line to the pit-beef and oyster-shucking tent outside was well established. Never mind that this was St. Patrick's Day. Local Irish pubs didn't stand a chance against the annual benefit bull and oyster roast put on by Ravens Roost No. 27, the Duane Starks Charitable Foundation and the Cal Ripken Jr. / Lou Gehrig Fund. "People from Pennsylvania started getting here at 12," said Roost president / event co-chair Marc A. Lombardi.

With the 198th pick in the 2012 NFL draft (sixth round), the Ravens drafted speedy Miami wide receiver Tommy Streeter. The Ravens have said they hoped to add a wide receiver during the draft, and Streeter is a tall vertical target that, in theory, would help them expand their developing downfield passing attack. A hair under 6 feet 5, Streeter has excellent downfield speed for his size. At the scouting combine, he ran the 40-yard dash at 4.40 seconds, which was among the top times among wide receivers.

Duane Starks has gambled and lost. And he will gamble again.Last week, the Ravens' rookie cornerback fell for one of the oldest traps in pro football.As San Diego receiver Charlie Jones ran at Starks and cut to the outside, quarterback Craig Whelihan pump-faked.Starks, salivating over the prospect of another interception, broke toward Jones, who turned and headed up the sideline, leaving Starks behind. Jones settled under the pass before completing a pivotal, 47-yard scoring play in a 14-13 Ravens loss.

In consecutive drafts in 1998 and 1999, the Ravens found two starting Super Bowl cornerbacks. One was smallish Duane Starks; the other was prototypical big cornerback Chris McAlister. In each case, the price was the 10 t h overall pick. Now, for the first time since general manager Ozzie Newsome empowered that Super Bowl defense, the Ravens could spend a first-round pick Thursday night in search of the elusive shutdown cornerback. Or they could wait until the third round to find reinforcements for Chuck Pagano's retooled secondary.

Nearly a year ago, cornerback Duane Starks was nowhere to be found on the practice fields, but now he is all over them.Starks, entering his second year, has clearly been the best defensive back in the Ravens' training camp. He is no longer overthinking or hesitating, just reacting and beaming with confidence. This Starks isn't the same Starks.As a rookie, he reported to training camp late after a weeklong holdout. The new guy couldn't wait for training camp to open."If you had asked me last year what I needed to learn, I would have said, `A lot,' even though I didn't know how much," said Starks.

The diminutive figure on the NFL's elite defense, Duane Starks has grown recently. Once singled out for downfield strikes by opponents, the 5-foot-9 Ravens cornerback took a sizable stand at midseason. It was time to erase the stigmas of being too small, too anxious and too much of a weak link. Over the past five games, Starks has begun to reshape his reputation from a viable target to a vital playmaker, breaking up 11 passes and delivering five interceptions. "I took that criticism very personal," Starks said.

When Duane Starks glided into the end zone after intercepting a pass during the Ravens' Super Bowl victory, the cornerback out of Miami was feeling an all-time professional high -- one he hopes to ride into Pro Bowl territory this year. "I think that play shows the talent I have," said Starks, who stepped in front of a pass thrown by New York Giants quarterback Kerry Collins and raced 49 yards for the touchdown, putting the Ravens up 17-0 in the third quarter. "It's also a confidence booster because it lets you know that you're doing the right thing to make plays.

Balloons of black, purple, and football-shaped mylar danced above dozens of purple-draped tables set up at Michael's 8th Avenue in Glen Burnie. Some 930 Baltimore Ravens football fans came from all over Maryland for the "Second Annual Benefit Bull & Oyster Roast" raising more than $12,000 for Ravens Roost 27, Duane Starks Charitable Foundation and the Cal Ripken, Jr./Lou Gehrig Fund for Neuromuscular Research. There was plenty to do - dance to the DJ, play game wheels for the chance to win plants, and browse the buffet featuring raw oysters, barbecue, Italian sausages, and turkey.

With the 198th pick in the 2012 NFL draft (sixth round), the Ravens drafted speedy Miami wide receiver Tommy Streeter. The Ravens have said they hoped to add a wide receiver during the draft, and Streeter is a tall vertical target that, in theory, would help them expand their developing downfield passing attack. A hair under 6 feet 5, Streeter has excellent downfield speed for his size. At the scouting combine, he ran the 40-yard dash at 4.40 seconds, which was among the top times among wide receivers.

Thumbs up: During a two-minute drill in full-team drills, Elvis Grbac connected with Travis Taylor on two neat receptions, the first an out pattern and the second to a seam in front of Rod Woodson. Thumbs down: Grbac had to dump the ball on the next two plays, as Shannon Sharpe and then Qadry Ismail, his primary receivers, had defenders in their faces. Trainer's room: Tony Siragusa underwent an arthroscopic procedure to clean debris from a knee and will miss seven to 10 days. Adrian Wilson (knee)

The Ravens aren't trying to fool anyone. They know they played a second-year quarterback in Mark Sanchez and faced a vanilla passing game in the season opener against the New York Jets on Monday night. The Ravens (1-0) will be in another stratosphere Sunday in Cincinnati when they face the Bengals (0-1). It's a first-class aerial show. "Obviously, they know us and we know them, having played them through the years," said Chuck Pagano, the Ravens' secondary coach. "Scheme-wise, we have a pretty good idea of what they are going to do. From a physical standpoint, they have a great group of receivers.

If NFL history repeats itself, the Ravens will select Washington State cornerback Marcus Trufant with their first pick. If a new chapter unfolds, the Ravens could be on the move in tomorrow's draft. Looking back at past drafts, there is a strong connection between cornerbacks and the No. 10 pick, with the Ravens choosing two at that spot - Duane Starks and Chris McAlister - in the previous five years. But instead of going by the book this year, the Ravens may be looking to the Jimmy Johnson chart.

The Ravens were informed by league officials that they will pick either 10th or 11th in April's NFL draft. A coin flip - which usually takes place in March - will determine whether the Ravens or the Seattle Seahawks select 10th. The Ravens are one of five teams that finished with a 7-9 mark. Their strength of schedule (opposing teams had a .506 winning percentage) was identical to that of the Seahawks, so the coin flip will serve as the tiebreaker. There is a history with the Ravens and the 10th pick.

The doors officially opened at 1 p.m. By then, Michaels Eighth Avenue was more than half full. And the line to the pit-beef and oyster-shucking tent outside was well established. Never mind that this was St. Patrick's Day. Local Irish pubs didn't stand a chance against the annual benefit bull and oyster roast put on by Ravens Roost No. 27, the Duane Starks Charitable Foundation and the Cal Ripken Jr. / Lou Gehrig Fund. "People from Pennsylvania started getting here at 12," said Roost president / event co-chair Marc A. Lombardi.

Shannon Sharpe backtracked from his criticism of Elvis Grbac but questioned the Ravens' passion to defend their Super Bowl championship. Sharpe broke Ozzie Newsome's NFL record for career receptions by a tight end Sunday, but the celebration was muted by a 27-17 loss to the Cleveland Browns in which Grbac threw four interceptions and lost a fumble. Afterward, Sharpe said Grbac wasn't getting the job done that he was hired to do, but yesterday he softened his comments." "I guess you all interpreted that I was not supporting Elvis," Sharpe said.

Cleveland 3 17 0 7 - 27 Baltimore 0 7 10 0 - 17 Thumbs up: Middle linebacker Ray Lewis. The Ravens' All-Pro was everywhere on the field, racking up 13 tackles and breaking up two passes. He nearly had the play of the game when he hurried Browns quarterback Tim Couch and then chased down receiver Quincy Morgan's fumble at the Cleveland 7. But officials overturned the play on a replay challenge, saying the pass was incomplete. Thumbs down: Quarterback Elvis Grbac. His poor decisions cost the Ravens the game.

Ravens starting cornerbacks Chris McAlister and Duane Starks were both listed as questionable for Sunday's season opener against the Chicago Bears, but both said they expected to play. McAlister, who has not missed a game in his two seasons with the Ravens, practiced lightly yesterday, trying to keep from running on his sprained ankle. "I'm playing," McAlister said. "I'm just resting it up right now. It's nothing serious. They just told me to sit out and not worry about stressing on it right now."

Thumbs up: To Ravens outside linebacker Peter Boulware for shouldering the load. Completely healthy for the first time in three years, he finished with the game's most impressive line: 11 tackles, two sacks, two passes broken up and two forced fumbles. Thumbs down: The Ravens turned the ball over on two fumbles in 30 rushing attempts. Last year, they lost the ball only seven times on 511 carries. Stat of game: 1.3 -- The Bears' average yards per play against the Ravens' defense in the second half.

The Ravens got the last word with a last-second stand. Stuffing the Titans' Steve McNair on a quarterback sneak, the Ravens prevailed by seconds and inches for a 16-10 triumph over Tennessee last night in the final - and possibly most memorable - installment of this bitter divisional rivalry. "By far it's the craziest game I've ever been a part of," defensive tackle Tony Siragusa said. "[Defensive coordinator] Marvin [Lewis] called maximus blitz. That means everyone is going in. We knew they were going to come with the quarterback sneak.

Turnovers have led this Ravens' road trip into a dead end. A third-place record has changed this journey into a crossroads.Swallowing some pride as a franchise yesterday, the Ravens watched their title defense get put on notice in a humbling 24-14 loss to the Cleveland Browns. Undone by three turnovers and seven sacks, the Ravens were defeated by Cleveland for the first time since the club's move from here by owner Art Modell, who declined to comment on the loss. Unable to stop big plays, the Ravens have landed with a thud into third in the AFC Central, falling to 3-3 and feeling their season now teetering.