Zeier

As the Ravens' second preseason game draws near, second-year quarterback Wally Richardson goes on wondering when his chance will come. It could happen on Saturday against the New York Jets, especially after backup quarterback Eric Zeier pulled out of yesterday's practice with a pulled right hip muscle.During his rookie season in 1997, Richardson saw the entire 20-game season -- including four preseason games -- go by without taking a snap as the team's third-string passer. This year, Richardson is behind Jim Harbaugh and Zeier as the scout-team quarterback, and he already has watched the preseason opener from the sideline.

The Ravens lost their second defensive lineman this week after learning yesterday that rookie tackle Martin Chase would miss an estimated four to six weeks with a severely sprained right ankle.Chase, a fifth-round draft pick who suffered the injury Saturday, will be re-tested after about three weeks. The good news is a test on his sore knee from a previous injury revealed nothing serious.On Sunday, the Ravens lost backup defensive end Mike Frederick for two weeks to a knee injury.Zeier's atonementIt didn't take backup quarterback Eric Zeier long to make up for a bad day.At yesterday's morning practice, Zeier looked sharp.

It has become a knee jerk reflex with Eric Zeier. Ask the Ravens' veteran backup quarterback to talk about himself, and he winces.Ask him to reflect on that exhilarating December last season, when Zeier proved to himself, the Ravens and the rest of the NFL that, yes, he could play in this league. Zeier smiles with self-deprecation, then showers his coaches, linemen, running backs and receivers with compliments.Ask him what it's like to go from an unknown commodity to a sought-after free agent -- a process that transformed Zeier from a low-paid passer into an instant millionaire.

The Ravens shored up a significant need yesterday, and as a result, backup quarterback Eric Zeier will head into his fourth season with more job security and a tremendous pay raise.As expected, the Ravens retained the services of Zeier, a restricted free agent, by matching the Atlanta Falcons' two-year, $2.6 million offer sheet.Zeier will collect a $2 million signing bonus and a base salary of $300,000 for the next two seasons. By matching Atlanta's bid, the Ravens gave Zeier a 1,000 percent raise over last season, when he earned $233,300.

Two days after losing veteran cornerback Antonio Langham, the Ravens set their sights on Langham's replacement by initiating trade talks with the Carolina Panthers regarding veteran cornerback Tyrone Poole.Poole, 5 feet 9, 188 pounds, has become expendable in Carolina, which recently signed former Green Bay standout Doug Evans to team up with Eric Davis.A first-round draft pick in 1995 out of Fort Valley State, Poole is heading into the final season of a four-year contract, and is scheduled to earn $704,000 in 1998.

The Ravens have vowed to retain the services of restricted free-agent quarterback Eric Zeier, and the Atlanta Falcons decided to put Zeier's team to the test.Zeier signed a two-year, $2.6 million offer sheet from the Falcons yesterday. The deal includes a $2 million signing bonus and a base salary of $300,000 for the 1998 and 1999 seasons.The Ravens expect to receive the offer sheet from the NFL today, after which they will have one week to match Atlanta's offer.If they fail to do so, the Ravens will lose Zeier, a fourth-year backup passer out of Georgia whose stock rose last December, when he replaced benched starter Vinny Testaverde and led the Ravens to two victories in their last three games.

Ravens owner Art Modell said yesterday that he plans to keep backup quarterback Eric Zeier, let reserve center Quentin Neujahr move on and possibly restructure the contracts of some of the team's younger stars, such as linebacker Ray Lewis and wide receiver Jermaine Lewis, before the end of the 1998 season.During a one-hour interview yesterday at the team's downtown headquarters, Modell was feisty, defensive and extremely confident about the Ravens' chances in the 1998 season.He touched on a number of subjects, such as the recent addition of cornerback Rod Woodson, exploring last-minute deals in the NFL draft next month and defending the team's decision to sign fullback Roosevelt Potts.

As several NFL teams continued to court cornerback Antonio Langham and special teams player Bennie Thompson -- two of the Ravens' unrestricted free agents -- the club yesterday was preparing to release veteran left guard Leo Goeas.An announcement could come within the next few days, according to Goeas' agent, Mark Bartelstein.The 6-foot-4, 300-pound Goeas was signed to a three-year, $2 million contract last March. He started seven of 11 games for the Ravens (six at left guard, one at center)

If depth and lack of competition were two of the Ravens' major problems during this season, then the team may have found some answers for next year in players such as Eric Zeier, John Williams, Ralph Staten, Keith Washington and James Roe.Once the Ravens were eliminated from the playoffs after a 10-10 tie to the Philadelphia Eagles and a 16-13 loss to the Arizona Cardinals during mid-November, injuries forced the club to turn to its reserves.And the results have been favorable with consecutive wins over Seattle and Tennessee.

There was almost one more miracle on 33rd Street. Almost. When cornerback John Williams knocked down Steve McNair's pass to Frank Wycheck at the Ravens' 34-yard line with 16 seconds left, the final chapter of the illustrious history of the NFL at Memorial Stadium was closed with the Ravens' 21-19 victory over the Tennessee Oilers yesterday. The place once known as the world's largest outdoor insane asylum rocked one more time as the past met the present with old Colts such as John Unitas, Lenny Moore and Lydell Mitchell passing the baton to Baltimore's newest stars such as Jonathan Ogden, Ray Lewis and Michael Jackson.