Dwan Edwards

Free-agent defensive end Dwan Edwards left his visit with the Buffalo Bills on Tuesday without a deal, which might lead to his return to the Ravens. Edwards has made three visits during free agency and has yet to receive an offer. "[Free agency] has been a little difficult. I'm not going to lie," Edwards said in his first comments since becoming a free agent at the beginning of this month. "I kind of new coming in some teams might have some issues with my neck." Edwards had spinal fusion surgery after missing the 2008 season.

Ravens NFL hands out two 5th-round compensatory draft picks The Ravens were awarded two fifth-round compensatory picks Friday, Nos. 164 and 165 overall. Although the Ravens hadn't received a compensatory pick in the previous two drafts, this improves their total to 31 since 1995, the most in the NFL. The NFL handed out those picks to the Ravens after they lost defensive end Dwan Edwards to the Buffalo Bills and defensive tackle Justin Bannan to the Denver Broncos as unrestricted free agents in 2010.

Former Ravens defensive end Dwan Edwards officially signed his four-year deal with the Buffalo Bills on Wednesday. The deal has a maximum value of $18 million. At his press conference, Edwards said it isn't difficult to go from a winning culture with the Ravens to a rebuilding team in the Bills. "It's definitely more rewarding when you take something that's maybe not as good now, but people can definitely see the potential that this team has," Edwards said. "It's going to be a process.

Ravens run offense vs. Bills run defense: Over the past three seasons, the Ravens have rushed for an NFL-best 152.8 yards per game at home and a league-high 29 touchdowns. That's troubling news for the Bills, who have the NFL's worst run defense. Buffalo has surrendered an average of 182.4 yards on the ground and could be without starting nose tackle Kyle Williams (questionable, ankle). Defensive end Dwan Edwards, who played for the Ravens from 2004 to 2009, is the Bills' most active tackler at the point of attack.

The small, horizontal scar is barely discernible until Dwan Edwards stretches out his thick, bull neck, as if showing off a medal. This is no medal, though. That scar and what lay beneath cost the Ravens defensive lineman the entire 2008 season and almost his career, all from an injury seemingly so inconsequential that Edwards didn't think he was hurt. The bulging disc in his neck came from a blow to the head in an August preseason game one summer ago. It took five doctors and four months to convince Edwards that surgery was necessary to continue his career.

Here's a look at recent mock draft projections for the Ravens, who hold the 25th overall pick in next month's NFL draft: • DraftCountdown.com has the Ravens selecting Penn State defensive end Jared Odrick with the 25th overall pick. Odrick isn't flashy but he is a consistent, technically sound player who would fit in nicely opposite Haloti Ngata. • WalterFootball.com also thinks the Ravens will pick Odrick. To steal something from my 2011 NFL Mock Draft, Dwan Edwards is gone, while Justin Bannan signed with the Broncos.

Veteran defensive end Trevor Pryce has agreed to a $2.5 million cut in salary that apparently ensures him a fifth season with the Ravens. According to the NFL Players Association, Pryce accepted a salary reduction from $4.5 million to $2 million for the 2010 season, the final year of the contract he signed with the Ravens as a free agent in 2006. Pryce, 34, lost his starting job to Dwan Edwards in October but still led the team in sacks with 61/2. He has a total of 26 sacks in four years in Baltimore.

George Kokinis, the Ravens' pro personnel director, sizes up the top matchup against the Browns: The players Thomas and Suggs were defensive ends in college who have learned to play in coverage in the NFL. Thomas, a Pro Bowl special teams player in 2003, is fourth on the team with 22 tackles and has broken up one pass. Suggs, a Pro Bowl player last season, made his second career interception last Sunday. After being inactive for the first three games this season with a shoulder injury, Shea returned last Sunday to make six catches for 65 yards, including a 27-yard reception.

Quarterback F Joe Flacco looked more poised and mobile in the pocket than he has in weeks. He started out slow, but what else is new? He had several passes dropped, one by Todd Heap for a possible touchdown. Those two interceptions at the end were killers. Offensive line C The Ravens have to become tougher, especially in the middle of the line. Left guard Ben Grubbs played an extremely poor first half, and both tackles, Jared Gaither and Michael Oher, struggled in pass protection at times.

Willis McGahee chuckled at a question asking whether he might have been held out of action in the Ravens' 23-20 loss to the Patriots because he was being punished for some rules violation the team is trying to keep quiet. "Where is everyone getting this punishment thing from?" McGahee said. "You all think I'm this bad guy who did something wrong? I was on time for everything. I went to every meeting. ... There was no punishment. Not that I know of. I didn't do anything wrong. I hope it wasn't a punishment.

Jarret Johnson senses it from opposing offensive linemen when they see Haloti Ngata standing in front of them. "There are times that you'll hear guys joking during TV timeouts, saying, 'Hey 92, why don't you go to the other side?' " the Ravens linebacker said. "There's a lot of truth to what they're saying. They don't want to deal with the big guy. He's a big, physical presence, and he tosses guys around. " That was obvious Sunday in Pittsburgh. Coming off his and the defensive line's worst performance of the season against the Cleveland Browns, the 6-foot-4, 350-pound defensive tackle sacked Steelers quarterback Charlie Batch on the game's first series and finished with a career-high 11 tackles, including two for losses, despite often being double-teamed.

Free-agent kicker Shayne Graham arrived in Baltimore on Wednesday, moving one step closer to signing with the Ravens. Graham appears set to take a physical with the team once the sides reach an agreement on the expected one-year contract. Although the deal hasn't been finalized after two days of talks, a Ravens official said he would be "shocked" if the team didn't strike a deal with the NFL's fourth-most accurate kicker. Graham, who has kicked for the Cincinnati Bengals for the past seven seasons, would compete against Billy Cundiff to become the Ravens' kicker this season.

Veteran defensive end Trevor Pryce has agreed to a $2.5 million cut in salary that apparently ensures him a fifth season with the Ravens. According to the NFL Players Association, Pryce accepted a salary reduction from $4.5 million to $2 million for the 2010 season, the final year of the contract he signed with the Ravens as a free agent in 2006. Pryce, 34, lost his starting job to Dwan Edwards in October but still led the team in sacks with 61/2. He has a total of 26 sacks in four years in Baltimore.

Here's a look at recent mock draft projections for the Ravens, who hold the 25th overall pick in next month's NFL draft: • DraftCountdown.com has the Ravens selecting Penn State defensive end Jared Odrick with the 25th overall pick. Odrick isn't flashy but he is a consistent, technically sound player who would fit in nicely opposite Haloti Ngata. • WalterFootball.com also thinks the Ravens will pick Odrick. To steal something from my 2011 NFL Mock Draft, Dwan Edwards is gone, while Justin Bannan signed with the Broncos.

Fans of every local team had something to talk about this week. The O's young ace. The Ravens' latest move. The Capitals' rejuvenated goalie. And the end of the road for one Terps team, and a fresh start for another. [1] Future Orioles ace Brian Matusz -- and by future, I mean in a month or two -- continued his impressive spring this week. In Wednesday's 4-2 loss to the Cardinals, he allowed three runs in six innings and held star sluggers Albert Pujols and Matt Holliday hitless.

The Ravens hope they found their new starting defensive end as they signed free agent Cory Redding to a two-year, $6 million deal Monday. Redding, 29, who played for the Detroit Lions and Seattle Seahawks, was once considered the top inside pass rusher in the league. But questions about his knee injury and a drop-off in production caused him to sit for two weeks on the free-agent market. By reaching a deal with Redding, the Ravens don't have any holes remaining in their starting lineup, which allows them to select the best player available with the 25th overall pick in the draft.

Former Ravens defensive end Dwan Edwards officially signed his four-year deal with the Buffalo Bills on Wednesday. The deal has a maximum value of $18 million. At his press conference, Edwards said it isn't difficult to go from a winning culture with the Ravens to a rebuilding team in the Bills. "It's definitely more rewarding when you take something that's maybe not as good now, but people can definitely see the potential that this team has," Edwards said. "It's going to be a process.