Steve Bisciotti

We'll have plenty of time to talk about this in the weeks ahead, but it dawned on me  Sunday just how many difficult decisions owner Steve Bisciotti , general manager Ozzie Newsome and the rest of the Ravens' front office will have to make this offseason. Some answers might become self evident over the next several weeks, but right now, the picture is pretty murky. What do they do with Joe Flacco , whose recent troubling play has reignited the debate on whether the Ravens should make a long-term commitment to him as their franchise quarterback?

If the next three games are Jim Caldwell's audition to become the Ravens' permanent offensive coordinator, then the odds are stacked against him. On Thursday before practice, Caldwell was all smiles as he answered questions. He said he liked a challenge, which is part of the reason he got into coaching. But facing the Denver Broncos Sunday in Baltimore isn't just an uphill battle, it's Mount Everest. If the Ravens plan to run the ball they might not produce enough points. If they engage in a shootout, they might get shot down by one of the NFL's top gunslingers, Peyton Manning.

The question came at the end of John Harbaugh's news conference Wednesday, and it signaled one of those days for the Ravens coach. "John," a guy said, "some people would say this is dancing very close to the edge of chaos. " "No, that's ridiculous," Harbaugh said, giving the questioner his best death-stare. "It's ridiculous. " Leaving the podium, the normally affable Harbaugh then hurried over to the reporter to re-emphasize - this time more personally - how ridiculous he thought the question was. That's the kind of day it was at the Castle, where the Ravens seemed determined to show that all was still right in their world.

Calling it the hardest decision he's had to make as a coach, John Harbaugh fired Cam Cameron on Monday, ending the offensive coordinator's five-season tenure which was defined by some improvement but overall inconsistency. Jim Caldwell, the Ravens' quarterbacks coach and the former head coach of the Indianapolis Colts, will take over offensive coordinator and play-calling duties immediately. The somewhat surprising move - given the Ravens' first-place standing in the AFC North at 9-4 and the organization's history of not making rash decisions - came a day after the Ravens' 31-28 overtime loss to the Washington Redskins.

It will be interesting to see this week if the Ravens make any changes along the offensive line, a group that for the most part has struggled the past couple of weeks and will be under fire again come Sunday against the Pittsburgh Steelers. The position to watch, mainly because it's been unsettled all season, would be left guard. The Ravens have now given three different players a trial run with Ramon Harewood getting five starts, Bobbie Williams getting four and Jah Reid starting the past two games.

On a cool, clear day made for football, Art Modell was laid to rest. Just 12 hours after the Ravens won their opener, 44-13 over the Cincinnati Bengals, more than 400 people - including quarterback Joe Flacco, running back Ray Rice and linebacker Ray Lewis - gathered at Baltimore Hebrew Congregation to pay homage to Modell, the team's former owner, who died at 87 on Sept. 6. "Art was a special guy who did so much for the game and community," said Flacco, adding that the Ravens were inspired by Modell's spirit Monday night.

After drawing national attention for his attempt to muzzle a football player who supported gay rights, a Maryland delegate walked back his position Sunday and said Ravens linebacker Brendon Ayanbadejo should be allowed to speak out in favor of same-sex marriage. "Upon reflection, he has his First Amendment rights," Del. Emmett C. Burns Jr., a Baltimore County Democrat, said in a telephone interview. "And I have my First Amendment rights. … Each of us has the right to speak our opinions.

All the strong qualities that Art Modell brought to the Baltimore Ravens have surfaced. Modell, 87, died Thursday morning of natural causes at Johns Hopkins Hospital , and if the Ravens weren't practicing Friday, it would have been hard to tell that they have a game Monday against the Cincinnati Bengals. It's a somber but celebratory mood over at The Castle. It's sad because a giant of a man is gone, but also a time to share Modell stories. Almost everybody has one. It's one of the main reasons the Modell family and the Ravens agreed to hold a silent viewing and memorial at M & T Bank Stadium on Saturday.

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. Former Ravens owner Art Modell, who brought the franchise to Baltimore in 1996, died of natural causes Thursday morning at Johns Hopkins Hospital. Modell was 87. A hero in Baltimore for bringing professional football back to town and a villain in Cleveland for relocating the Cleveland Browns, Modell was much more than that.

The new Ravens owner was sitting on stage at the Inner Harbor, and looking quite uncomfortable. On Nov. 6, 1995, Art Modell announced that he was moving the Browns from Cleveland to Baltimore, and while local politicians couldn't hide their enthusiasm, Modell appeared embarrassed. Only seconds after the news conference ended, Modell was ushered off the stage like the president of the United States, completely surrounded by security. But he left his limousine window open for a few seconds, so I approached to introduce myself, only to have him roll the window up in my face.