Rams

We knew there was a decent chance the Ravens would be 1-1 as they headed into St. Louis to take on the Rams in Week 3, but I'm guessing that few of us thought that loss would come against the Titans. But that disappointing 26-13 letdown is in the rearview mirror -- at least it better be for the men in black and purple -- as the Ravens play the Rams on Sunday at another challenging road stadium. The 0-2 Rams are an inferior team in terms of talent. The Ravens can't afford to give away another win. Here are five significant storylines to follow from your sofas as the Ravens play the Rams on Sunday: 1. Who will Joe Flacco throw the ball to?

Representing Dunbar High with a maroon suit and maroon tie, Tavon Austin strolled into Radio City Music Hall around 7 p.m. Thursday night to see his lifelong dream fulfilled. At 7:34 p.m., he and 22 other top prospects were introduced to the crowd. Each towered over him. Austin then retreated to the green room, downed a bag of potato chips and watched the draft unfold, his legs shaking the whole time, with a group of family and friends, including his mother, Cathy Green, and grandmother, Louann Green.

Ravens 37, Rams 7 Fourth quarter: 4:58 Baltimore Touchdown - Sam Bradford sacked by Haloti Ngata for no gain. Sam Bradford fumble recovered by Haloti Ngata at the St. Louis 32, returned into the end zone. (Billy Cundiff extra point is good). Ravens 30, Rams 7 Third quarter: 5:14 St. Louis Touchdown - Sam Bradford pass to Brandon Gibson for 34 yards. (Josh Brown extra point is good). Ravens 30, Rams 0 Third quarter: 10:29 Baltimore Field Goal - 38-yarder by Billy Cundiff.

The Ravens 2013 preseason schedule is highlighted by a prime-time home game against the Carolina Panthers on Thursday, Aug. 22 at M&T Bank Stadium, the NFL announced today. That game, which will be the third of four preseason games for the Super Bowl XLVII champions, will start at 8 p.m. and be televised by ESPN. The Ravens will open up the preseason against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Raymond James Stadium. The exact date and time of the game has yet to be announced. In Week Two of the preseason, the Ravens will host the Atlanta Falcons on Thursday, Aug. 15 at M&T Bank Stadium.

Live chat: Ravens vs. Rams

ST. LOUIS – The Ravens' 27-21 ugly preseason loss to the St. Louis Rams burst many bubbles and caused coach John Harbaugh to explode in anger. The score didn't reflect the most haphazard showing in the Harbaugh three-year era. The preseason finale at an empty Edward Jones Dome was filled with head-shaking blunders and disgraceful acts. There was Dannell Ellerbe taunting the Rams after the linebacker returned an interception for a touchdown. There was undrafted rookie Prince Miller dropping a punt inside his 10-yard line.

The controversy surrounding the shenanigans of Giants linebacker Jacquian Williams and safety Deon Grant simply refuses to go quietly. Williams and Grant fell to the ground late in the first quarter of the Giants' 28-16 win Monday, when the Rams were using the no-huddle offense. The Rams contend the injuries seemed suspect, aimed at gaining a breather for the tired Giants defense. "It gave them time to rest and recover because their tongues were hanging out," Rams center Jason Brown said Wednesday.

Every time I put out one of my mock drafts, readers tell me they think things would play out differently (chances are we'll both end up being wrong). Well, now you get a chance to play GM in my first-ever reader NFL mock draft. Here's how it works. I'll post a daily poll where you can vote to decide what the team that's on the clock should do with its pick. To keep it simple, I'll give you five options for each pick. If you think I missed somebody, let me know in the comments section.

During a normal practice week, the Rams don't do their red zone work until Friday. But this isn't a normal week. Not after misfiring three times in the red zone Monday against the New York Giants and four times in five trips inside the 20 this season. So on Wednesday, the Rams' did their "Ram-ball" drill in the red zone, instead of in the middle of the field. Ram-ball, coach Steve Spagnuolo explained, "is basically the Rams' offense vs. the Rams' defense. It's usually about eight plays.

Kevin Cowherd Ravens 31, Rams 7 Cam Cameron doesn't have to change his phone number this week as Ravens reassure their rattled fans with an offensive outburst. Edward Lee Ravens 20, Rams 16 The Ravens catch a break with the Rams coming off of a short week, losing their top running back and wide receiver to injuries, and fielding the worst rush defense in the league. Mike Preston Ravens 20, Rams 10 Ravens have to make up for last week's disaster.

Christopher McKenna, an aspiring young artist, packs talent into a creative window painting of the school mascot, a ram. The 13-year-old Edgewood Middle School student, originally from Alabama, moved to Edgewood when he was 9. He lives with his mother, Colleen McKenna, and three siblings who also attend Edgewood Middle and Edgewood High. Christopher is considering becoming an artist one day. He plans to paint a larger ram image on the front window of Edgewood Middle School for all visitors to see as they enter.

Marah Strickland didn't have any idea she was sick. She played two years at St. John's Catholic Prep in Frederick, two years at Towson Catholic, two seasons at Maryland and one season at South Carolina, and it's possible she was symptomatic the entire time. She just didn't know. A little more than two years ago, she finally found out. Doctors diagnosed Strickland with hypothyroidism before the 2011-12 season, and they told her it was something she might have had for a long time.

Randallstown girls basketball coach Ron Isaacs called his team "the Cinderella team" of the state Class 2A state semifinals, but the Rams did not have a great time at the ball. Isaacs' youngsters stuck close for a while before Middletown's combination of outside shooting and inside strength overwhelmed them and powered the Knights to a 60-27 victory at UMBC's RAC Arena. The Rams (22-7) had their only leads in the first quarter. Mariah Byam's follow shot and Essence Stinnette's free throw gave them a 9-8 edge, but that would be their last lead as Middletown scored 12 straight points.

The Randallstown boys basketball team had the ultimate fourth-quarter test of character. The Rams saw their 15-point lead dwindle to nothing with five minutes to play in Tuesday's Class 2A North region semifinal. The opponent was No. 13 Lake Clifton, defending state champions and the same Lakers who rallied past them earlier in the season. Instead of folding, Randallstown stayed poised. The Rams executed on offense and clamped down on defense, scoring the next eight points to restore order and claim a hard-fought 59-55 win on their home court.

Erik Etherly and Robert Olson both scored 23 points, and Anthony Winbush finished with a career-best 20, but it was not enough to counteract the game-high 35 put up by Iona's Lamont Jones, as the Gaels defeated Loyola, 90-86, on Friday night. Iona (16-13, 10-7 Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference) shot 76 percent from the field in the second half, making 19 of 25 shots after the break, and Jones made all seven of his attempts in the final 20 minutes. Olson tied the game at 36 9.8 seconds before the half with a 3-pointer from the left side off an assist by R.J. Williams.

Going into Wednesday night's Class 3A North regional basketball semifinal, the Aberdeen girls figured they could run against Digital Harbor, but they still had to counter the Rams' inside game. When two of Digital's top three inside threats got into foul trouble in the second quarter and All-Metro forward A'Lexus Harrison had to sit with three fouls, No. 2 Aberdeen ran away with a 74-40 victory. "One of our main goals is to get their good people out of the game, then we can take over," Eagles senior guard Jimmia McCluskey said.

Time could be on the Ravens' side when they visit the St. Louis Rams on Sunday. Having dropped a 28-16 decision to the New York Giants on Monday night, the Rams have had one fewer day to prepare for the game than the Ravens. Quarterback Joe Flacco said a full week of practice, meetings and film study should benefit the Ravens. “It is nice to get them on a short week,” Flacco said. “Anytime you get a team on a short week, I think it definitely is a little bit of an advantage in the NFL, when you can get beat up week to week.

ST. LOUIS - Although the Ravens' defense pulled the plug on "The Greatest Show on Turf," the team's offense became the main source of the St. Louis Rams' electricity last night. Four of the Ravens' seven turnovers led to 20 points as they bowed to the Rams in a wild 33-22 loss before 66,085 at Edward Jones Dome and a national television audience. The miscues ruined a dominating effort by the Ravens' defense, which held the Rams to a season-low 121 yards of total offense. At one point, the Ravens kept the NFL's top-ranked offense without a first down on seven straight series.

The old cliche that hip-hop headliners never take the stage on time was true on Thursday night at Rams Head Live. The Gaithersburg-born rapper Wale, the area's most prominent hip-hop artist on a national level, took the stage around midnight, an hour after he was scheduled to perform. But according to Wale, the delay wasn't his fault. At 11:51 p.m., Wale took to his Twitter account to inform fans he had just arrived after his professional driver was pulled over by police on the way to the venue.

The Digital Harbor starting five certainly did its part in Wednesday's Baltimore City Division I girls basketball championship game. A'Lexus Harrison, Tye Smith, Miqueara Lewis, Infiniti Alston and Jaida Scarborough combined to play almost the entire game against No. 7 City. Harrison led the way with 19 points and 16 rebounds, but everyone pitched in as No. 5 Digital Harbor won, 60-43, in the title game at Baltimore City Community College. Digital Harbor coach Patrick McDonald kept the starters in for all but about four minutes in the game, and each one helped out. Smith added 16 points and six assists, while Lewis had 12 points and nine rebounds.