Ravens Run

The Ravens running attack was stuck in neutral. Six days after gashing the New England Patriots for 234 yards and four touchdowns in a 33-14 rout in an AFC wild-card game, the Ravens could not find similar success in a 20-3 loss to the Indianapolis Colts here at Lucas Oil Stadium. The offense rushed for just 87 yards Saturday night. Ray Rice, who had gouged the Patriots for a playoff franchise-record 159 yards and two touchdowns, was limited to 67 yards on 13 carries. Rice, who took the first handoff for an 83-yard score in New England, gained just one yard on his first carry against the Colts.

For about 15 seconds last Sunday night, everything seemingly clicked. On the Ravens' first offensive play from scrimmage, running back Ray Rice took a handoff from Joe Flacco, found space on the left side behind tackle Bryant McKinnie and guard Ben Grubbs, and sprinted past the Pittsburgh Steelers' defense for what appeared to be a 76-yard touchdown run. Heinz Field went silent until a yellow flag was spotted near the Ravens' 34-yard line....

A year after he complained weekly about a lack of carries, Ravens running back Jamal Lewis basically shrugged when asked about the possibility of sharing the ball Sunday against the Carolina Panthers. Dividing the carries in a crowded backfield has become an increasingly hot topic for the Ravens (4-1) after Lewis continued to struggled in the 13-3 loss in Denver and his backups - Mike Anderson and Musa Smith - looked much sharper. Panthers@Ravens Sunday, 1 p.m., Ch. 45, 1090 AM, 97.9 FM Line: Ravens by 3

NASHVILLE, Tenn. - The bandwagon line is beginning to form for the Ravens. It's nothing definite, and it had seemed like the Ravens had pulled all the rabbits out of their hats last season, but there always seems to be another one. Last week, the Pittsburgh Steelers missed four field-goal attempts and the Ravens won. Last night, the Ravens pulled out their own Music City Miracle against the Tennessee Titans. On the last play of the game, Ravens defensive tackle Sam Adams, strong safety Corey Harris and linebacker Jamie Sharper combined to stop Steve McNair on a quarterback sneak from the 1-yard line, and the Ravens held on for a 16-10 victory at Adelphia Coliseum.

For a significant portion of the first quarter, the Ravens run defense must have felt as if it were stuck in a time warp with the needle squarely on Nov. 16, 2008. That's when the New York Giants ran for 207 yards — the third-most in Ravens history — and running back Ahmad Bradshaw led the way with 96 yards and Brandon Jacobs compiled 73 yards. That scenario eerily played out on the Giants' second possession of Saturday night's preseason contest against the Ravens at M&T Bank Stadium.

Many running backs have tried -- and failed -- to add their names to the short ledger of opponents who have gained 100yards on the ground against the Ravens. Peyton Hillis succeeded. The Cleveland Browns' featured back, Hillis rushed for 144 yards and a touchdown, serving as one of the few bright spots in the team's 24-17 loss to the Ravens at M&T Bank Stadium on Sunday. "We knew that he's a downhill back, but we were thinking they were going to run the other guys some more," outside linebacker Jarret Johnson said.

The Ravens' running attack was stuck in neutral. Six days after gashing the New England Patriots for 234 yards and four touchdowns in a 33-14 rout in an AFC wild-card game, the Ravens could not find similar success in a 20-3 loss to the Indianapolis Colts at Lucas Oil Stadium. The offense rushed for just 87 yards Saturday night. Ray Rice , who had gouged the Patriots for a playoff franchise-record 159 yards and two touchdowns, was limited to 67 yards on 13 carries. Rice, who took the first handoff for an 83-yard score in New England, gained just 1 yard on his first carry against the Colts.

Each week, we'll bring you a Q&A with a Ravens player to help you learn a little more about the team. Today's guest is running back Ray Rice, who finished the regular season as one of two players (the Tennessee Titans' Chris Johnson is the other) to compile more than 2,000 yards from scrimmage and ranks sixth in the NFL with 1,339 rushing yards. Rice discussed his Pro Bowl season, his relationship with fellow backs Willis McGahee and Le'Ron McClain, and answering the doubters. Question: Did you envision having the kind of season you've had this year?