San Francisco 49ers

Here is what other news outlets are saying about the Ravens, San Francisco 49ers and Super Bowl XLVII today. --- Don Banks of Sports Illustrated says this Super Bowl run is a testament to Ravens G.M. Ozzie Newsome . “In some form or fashion, on multiple fronts, the issue of legacy hangs over every Super Bowl these days. But that discussion at Super Bowl XLVII should start nowhere else but with the singular feat that would be Ozzie Newsome's if his Baltimore Ravens triumph Sunday night against San Francisco,” he wrote.

Ray Lewis' Ravens held on for dear life, a seemingly certain Super Bowl victory only a few yards from slipping away. In the end, however, Lewis got the finale he wanted to his decorated 17-year career, a world championship secured by one last defensive stand against the younger, faster San Francisco 49ers. When it was finally over, Lewis bellowed at the sky, his arms wide open as confetti rained around him. The face of the Ravens was a Super Bowl champion for the second time and a retiree for the first.

MIAMI -- Wide receiver Jerry Rice of the San Francisco 49ers spent the weekend before the Super Bowl fighting flu-like symptoms.The San Francisco 49ers downplayed the illness, noting he would be able to start and didn't miss any practice time. The 49ers said the illness was just a head cold."It's nothing big," said team spokesman Rodney Knox. "They're treating him as you would anyone with a cold."Besides drinking a lot of fluids, Rice was given an IV before Saturday's light drill to prevent dehydration.

The buzzword is "threepeat." Starting this evening, you're going to be hearing a lot more of the buzz.The San Francisco 49ers begin pursuit of their third straight NFL championship against the New Orleans Saints tonight (9, Ch. 13) at the Louisiana Superdome in the regular-season debut of "Monday Night Football."Eight months ago in this same building, the 49ers demolished the Denver Broncos 55-10 in Super Bowl XXIV. That rout marked the first time in a decade that any team had won back-to-back Super Bowls.

IRVING, Texas -- To the playbook filled with ploys that haven't worked against the San Francisco 49ers, add H2O.After last night's 24-6 win over the Dallas Cowboys, the 49ers complained about the water-soaked artificial surface at Texas Stadium and suggested that it had been done intentionally to slow them down."

2/3 TC For the San Francisco 49ers, there's no quarterback question about it -- it's Steve Bono.With a three-game winning streak to his credit and the other Steve still slowed by a bum knee, Bono remains the 49ers' starting quarterback -- at least for another week -- as San Francisco suddenly finds postseason play no longer out of the question."

Every morning, Monday through Friday, blogger Matt Vensel will hook you up with reading material -- mostly on the Ravens but with some other Baltimore sports stuff, too -- to skim through as you slug down coffee and slack off at the start of your workday. That way he'll have an excuse to do the same to start his workday, too. RUNNING IT BACK Four events turned the Ravens season on their path to the Super Bowl. ... Linebacker Brendon Ayanbadejo is looking to bring his same-sex marriage cause to the Super Bowl.