Line Of Scrimmage

Call it Yancey Thigpen's way of welcoming rookie cornerback Chris McAlister to the NFL.There was McAlister, making the first start of his promising career -- and doing so at the expense of fellow first-round draft pick Duane Starks -- in Tennessee on Sunday. There was McAlister, tracking Thigpen closely in man-to-man coverage near the right sideline, where the Titans' receiver slowed down and turned slightly toward the line of scrimmage as quarterback Neil O'Donnell pump-faked.And as McAlister took the bait, looked at O'Donnell and fell for Thigpen's stop-and-go move, there went Thigpen.

What's the call?POP-FLY PUNTAztec State is playing Mellon College in a football game.It's fourth-and-six for Aztec. Joe "The Toe" Grullon lines up 15 yards behind the line of scrimmage to punt. Hut! Hut! Hike! Joe takes the snap.Oops! The ball slips out of Joe's hands just as he is about to kick it. He hits the ball with his ankle! The ball soars straight up ... and falls straight down. It lands about a foot in front of Joe. Aztec running back Juan Rodriguez scoops up the ball and scampers across the line of scrimmage.

If the Ravens decide to select a receiver with their first-round pick, here are some that may be available:Torry HoltSchool: North Carolina StateHeight: 6-0Weight: 19240 time: 4.45Strengths: Makes the tough catches all over the field, and gets open consistently. Best hands in the draft.Weaknesses: Lacks blazing speed.David BostonSchool: Ohio StateHeight: 6-1Weight: 21540 time: 4.4Strengths: One of the bigger, stronger talents available. Came up big when it counted most.Weaknesses: Tendency to drop passes at times.

1 Crowd the line of scrimmage and shut off running back Jerome Bettis because quarterback Mike Tomczak can't beat them.2 Go after cornerback Deshea Townsend. He has been terrible, giving up a couple of big plays each game.3 Win the field-position game. Pittsburgh has only two real offensive weapons, punter Josh Miller and kicker Kris Brown.

D -- QuarterbacksStoney Case was mediocre but he didn't get a lot of practice time last week. He moved the team and threw for a game-tying touchdown, but his arm strength, particularly on out patterns, is questionable. Scott Mitchell was inaccurate and hasn't been in sync for the first two games. His feet look very slow in the pocket. He brings the overall grade down.C -- ReceiversActually, they caught the ball when Mitchell and Case got it to them. Qadry Ismail turned in another strong effort, but Jermaine Lewis has to do a better job of getting away from the defense when chucked at the line of scrimmage when he is in the slot.

With cornerbacks, wide receivers and offensive linemen weighing heavily on their minds in today's NFL draft, the Ravens also are keeping their eyes peeled for a talented defensive tackle to bolster a solid veteran line.A guy like North Carolina star Vonnie Holliday.And if Holliday, one of the top performers on one of the nation's premier collegiate defenses, is available when the Ravens are set to choose the 10th pick of the first round, he could end up in Baltimore.Or, if the Ravens decide to ad- Holliday dress other priorities -- a more likely possibility -- they would use Holliday as attractive bait to trade down in the first round and get an additional draft pick.

SAN DIEGO -- The difference between the Green Bay Packers and the Denver Broncos is running back Terrell Davis.Forget the offensive line. Forget the hard-hitting safeties. And forget John Elway. Terrell Davis is the Denver Broncos. Instead of the final score reading Denver 31, Green Bay 24, maybe this is more appropriate.Davis 31, Packers 24.Davis gives Denver a running game. He takes pressure off Elway, who threw for only 123 yards last night. His running ability also helps the Broncos control the clock and keep their defense off the field.

Wide receiver Jermaine Lewis says he believes he passed his first test, even though he didn't catch a single pass Saturday night in the Ravens' 19-14 win over the Chicago Bears.Despite being only 5 feet 7 and weighing just 172 pounds, Lewis said he had a solid day blocking for a running attack that finished with 197 yards.There was concern that Lewis, who played the slot or inside receiver his first two years in the league, would have problems getting off the line of scrimmage against more physical and talented cornerbacks on the outside.

Running backsPriest Holmes ran hard but had no place to run. At times, he looked a little indecisive instead of just leaning forward trying to get a yard. The Ravens often used two tight ends or three receivers, so fullback Roosevelt Potts was no factor.QuarterbackEric Zeier's numbers were misleading. He still has problems feeling the pressure in the pocket and sometimes just needs to tuck the ball and run. He missed on several short passes over the middle and his reads on several blitzes were incorrect.

OffenseAudible: A change of plays called by the quarterback at the line of scrimmage.Blindside: The side opposite from the quarterback's throwing arm, where he has less-than-maximum vision when setting to throw.Bootleg: A play in which the quarterback carries the hidden ball away from the direction of the play.Clipping: An illegal block in which an offensive player hits a defensive player from behind.Crackback block: An illegal block executed by an offensive player positioned more than 2 yards outside an offensive tackle.

On draft weekend in April, University of Georgia linebacker Dannell Ellerbe kept watching the clock and waiting for the phone to ring. No NFL team called during the two days, as each hour passed slowly. A lot of teams called shortly after the draft was over, but a dream and reportedly $2,000 more in bonus money persuaded Ellerbe to sign a free-agent contract with the Ravens. And now the fight is on. "I just want to prove myself and show everybody that I'm good enough to play in the NFL," Ellerbe said.

QB B- Joe Flacco managed the game well, especially considering that he is a rookie. He had a few misfirings but for the most part did a nice job handling the pressure. He had a touchdown run, and his block led to another touchdown off a double reverse. OL A The Ravens dominated the Bengals up front, particularly in the second half. The Ravens found a lot of yardage to the left side behind tackle Jared Gaither and guard Ben Grubbs.Center Jason Brown was dominant at the point of attack.

At a time when the season could be slipping away from the Ravens, there are no more excuses for their offense and besieged quarterback Steve McNair. The Ravens' offense expects to field its original starting lineup for the first time since the season opener. Across the line of scrimmage are the Cincinnati Bengals, who have the NFL's 31st-ranked defense, which is tied with the winless Miami Dolphins for most points allowed. Bengals@Ravens Today, 4:05 p.m., chs. 13, 9, 1090 AM, 97.9 FM Line: Ravens by 3 1/2

On Sept. 14, 2003, in the greatest feat over the 10 seasons at the Ravens' stadium, Jamal Lewis hammered his way to 295 rushing yards in a 33-13 victory over the Cleveland Browns, breaking the NFL mark, held by the Cincinnati Bengals' Corey Dillon, by 17 yards. Lewis had predicted the feat three days earlier in a phone call with Cleveland linebacker Andra Davis, saying he would break the record if he was given 30 carries. "It was like Babe Ruth pointing to the fence before the home run," Ravens coach Brian Billick said.

It was 16 hours after the Ravens had held on for a 20-13 victory over the New York Jets, and Ravens secondary coach Dennis Thurman still had his game face on. He seemed irritated, disgruntled and was downright nasty at times. That happens when a game that should have been a rout turns into a nail-biter because a secondary loaded with Pro Bowl players calls it a day a quarter before the game ends. The Ravens had trouble keeping their focus. Of New York's 235 passing yards, 176 came in the fourth quarter when the Jets had scoring drives of 68 and 81 yards.

The Ravens gave New York Jets wide receiver Justin McCareins the game ball last night and, of course, he dropped it. McCareins dropped two game-tying touchdown passes in the final two minutes, ruining a comeback attempt by New York as the Ravens held on for a 20-13 victory. While McCareins became the goat, it certainly opened up some questions about the Ravens' secondary, which supposedly had taken care of communication problems in training camp. It's apparent the secondary still has bugs to work out, as exemplifed by extra defensive backs Corey Ivy and Gerome Sapp looking so confused.

Quarterback B Steve McNair came out smoking in the first half but cooled down in the second. He has been lucky this season that some of his bad passes have not been picked off. He could easily have had two returned for touchdowns yesterday. But he did complete 21 of 31 passes for 245 yards. Running backs C Despite trying to get the running game going, the Ravens weren't really effective. Jamal Lewis had 72 yards on 24 carries and the team finished with 129 on 38 carries, but 30 yards came on a wimpy draw to Musa Smith at the end of the half instead of the Ravens attempting a long pass.

Demetrius Williams, the Ravens' fourth-round pick this year, could have a major impact. Just send him 3 or 4 yards off the line of scrimmage, get him the ball and stay out of his way. He looks explosive after the catch. David Wells has left Boston, but he won't be forgotten. The Red Sox are retiring his bar stool. I can admit when I'm wrong, probably because I've had so much practice. When the Orioles were courting Frank Thomas during the winter meetings, I shot down the idea. But Thomas has 28 homers and 79 RBIs entering last night's game, and he hasn't broken down.

Itend to avoid rankings. There are so many other places for fantasy lovers to find long lists of players that I feel I'm adding to the cacophony when I toss off my own. That said, most of the e-mails I get this time of year ask me if X guy is better than Y guy. There's no sense in denying that such thoughts sit at the core of football draft preparations. So in the name of efficiency, I'm going to devote the next three columns to rankings at the key offensive positions. We'll start with quarterbacks, the most important players on the field in real football games.

ASHBURN, Va. -- When Miami linebacker Roger "Rocky" McIntosh paid a visit to the Washington Redskins a couple of months ago, he had a good feeling about his potential employer. "I spent a lot of time when I was there, and it was nothing but positive things that they said about me," McIntosh said. "They really showed that they cared about me." It turns out that McIntosh wasn't kidding. Not content to wait until the latter half of the second round to make their first move in the NFL draft yesterday, the Redskins acquired the 35th overall pick from the New York Jets and took McIntosh.