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 Ray Lewis and his defensive teammates are confident in their abilities.
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Ray Lewis talks with ESPN's Suzy Kolber after the Ravens defense held the Raiders to just a field goal.
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Tuesday, January 16
Ravens continue defensive dominance
By John Clayton
ESPN.com
OAKLAND, Calif. -- Doubt the Ravens defense nevermore. Critics outnumbered supporters as
the Ravens defense entered Network Associates Coliseum. Sure, they were
great, but could they compensate for a lack of Ravens offense?
The Ravens defense joined the Steel Curtain in Pittsburgh and the
Bears of 1985 as the greatest in perhaps the past 30 years by pounding the
Raiders, 16-3. Like all of the great ones, they defy teams to do things
against them.
|  | | Michael McCrary records one of Baltimore's four sacks on the day. |
Enter the Raiders. They were the league's best running team this
year. The way Tyrone Wheatley was being slammed by the Ravens defense was like
watching a slapstick actor crashing into a clear glass door. Wheatley gained
7 yards on 12 carries. The Raiders as a team gained only 24 on 17 carries.
The more the Raiders ran, the more angry the Ravens became. As the
Titans found out last Sunday when their message board operator flashed
inflammatory videos, the last thing a team wants to do is anger the Ravens.
"They are all talking trash, and that just pisses you off,"
defensive tackle Sam Adams said. "Our scheme is man on man, and we go out
and play ball. And we play fundamental. But seven yards? We got in their
head."
Raiders quarterback Rich Gannon had it much worse than Wheatley.
With 11 minutes left in the second quarter, defensive tackle Tony Siragusa
deflected a Gannon pass and then landed his 341 pound body on top of Gannon.
"I got every pound of my fat ass on him," Siragusa said. "He
screamed a little bit, so I knew he was hurting. Air came out of me on that
hit."
Gannon went immediately to the locker room for X-rays on his bruised
clavicle. In the second half, he returned but wasn't the same
quarterback. He didn't have the arm strength to complete passes to the
sidelines. Distances on his long passes weren't there and his accuracy was spotty,
too.
How fitting. A sign above the Ravens benched bragged about how the
Raiders defense had knocked out or injured 11 quarterbacks this season. They
put Trent Dilfer and Tony Banks on the "Hit List." That only angered the
Ravens defense even more.
"Not to BS, but it didn't matter what quarterback was in the
game," middle linebacker Ray Lewis said. "That's a big impact losing him
because their momentum went down."
Bobby Hoying entered for Gannon twice, but it didn't matter. The
Ravens dominated. In a 10-0 first half, they limited the Raiders to 38 yards
on 25 plays, held them to seven three-and-outs and contained them inside the
Raiders 41-yard-line.
"If they aren't the best, then they're way up there at the top,"
Raiders coach Jon Gruden said of the Ravens defense. "They are very
explosive from left corner to right corner. They are outstanding. They have
a great pass rush with their front four, with a lot of stunts. They force
you to check the ball down at times, and when you do, there are guys like
Ray Lewis and Jamie Sharper to rattle you."
The Ravens give up few yards after receptions. Their tackling is
flawless. Reach the goal line? Forget it.
Early in the third quarter, the Raiders intercepted Trent Dilfer and got excellent field position. Gannon returned and moved the Raiders to a
first-and-goal at the Ravens' 2. Wheatley was stuffed for a 1-yard loss.
Sharper sacked Gannon for a 3-yard loss. On third down, Gannon found
halfback Randy Jordan open near the goal line but, perhaps bracing for a hit,
Jordan dropped the ball.
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We don't care if it's a half yard and they have four cracks at it, they aren't getting in. We have to make them believe that they aren't getting in. People don't score. That's what we do. ” |
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— Peter Boulware |
"If there has been any defense better than that that has been ever
assembled, I haven't read about it or seen it," Ravens tight end Shannon
Sharpe said.
Said coach Brian Billick, "The nature of our defense, you get a
feel of having control of the game defensively. That dictates what you do
offensively. We've gotten into a pattern, that routine. I'm going to have to
turn my diploma from BYU. I may never throw the ball again. That seems to be
our mentality.
"Once we get into a certain point of the game, we have confidence
in that."
So Billick, once a demon for going for touchdown pass after
touchdown pass in Minnesota, is content to play conservative and make sure
the offense doesn't screw it up for the defense.
"We don't care if it's a half yard and they have four cracks at
it, they aren't getting in," linebacker Peter Boulware said. "We have to
make them believe that they aren't getting in. People don't score. That's
what we do."
The Ravens set the record for the fewest points allowed in the regular season, and they
are amazing people by getting better and better each week stopping the run.
"We're on a mission," Ray Lewis said. "When people start telling
us we can't do this or that, we get so pumped up and motivated. When we are
away from home, we play so smooth because we can hear signals. At home, it's
harder to hear because the crowd is so loud."
The crowd in Oakland quieted as the game progressed. The Ravens took
the air out of Gannon and the voice out of the Raiders crowd.
They are that
good.
John Clayton is the senior NFL writer for ESPN.com.
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