The Indianapolis Colts get another crack at their first win inside brand new Lucas Oil Stadium on Sunday, when they host the Baltimore Ravens in a battle between 2-2 teams.
Indianapolis has dropped its first two games in its new digs and hasn't opened a season with three straight losses at home since the 1997 campaign, when Lindy Infante was head coach and Jim Harbaugh was the starting quarterback. That year Infante's squad lost its first six games at the RCA Dome.
Colts' eight-time Pro Bowl quarterback Peyton Manning engineered another comeback in the fourth quarter in this past Sunday's 31-27 victory over the AFC South-rival Houston Texans at Reliant Stadium. Indianapolis played poorly for the first 55 minutes and trailed 27-10 late before scoring 21 unanswered points for the victory. Manning threw a pair of touchdown passes, while linebacker Gary Brackett returned a fumble 68 yards for a score to keep Indy second in the division standings behind the 5-0 Tennessee Titans.
Manning is the only quarterback in NFL history to engineer a comeback in regulation after being behind by 17 or more points with five minutes remaining in the fourth quarter. He hopes he won't have to bail out his team again against a defensive-minded Ravens bunch led by nine-time Pro Bowl linebacker Ray Lewis. Lewis and the Baltimore defense provide not only a physical challenge to Manning, but also a mental hurdle. Manning can only study so much film, and the Ravens will surely install a new wrinkle on defense the likes of which the Colts have yet to see on tape.
In the last meeting between the teams back on December 9, 2007, Manning had four touchdown passes before leaving in the third quarter of the Colts' 44-20 drubbing of the Ravens at M&T Bank Stadium.
Baltimore has dropped two straight games by a combined six points and fell to 2-2 on the season following last week's 13-10 setback to the undefeated Titans. The Ravens, who are second in the AFC North behind the 4-1 Pittsburgh Steelers, will play the first of two straight road trips this week before paying a visit to the Miami Dolphins.
The Ravens haven't played particularly well on the road as of late, having lost six in a row as the visitor dating back to last season. The team will have its work cut out as it enters a hostile environment against a Colts team searching for its first home triumph of 2008.
Rookie quarterback Joe Flacco will remain the Ravens' starter for the time being, despite the fact that Troy Smith was back at practice this week after a recovering from a tonsil infection. According to first-year Ravens head coach John Harbaugh, Smith will be the third-string quarterback on Sunday and will be given a chance to compete with Todd Bouman for the backup role.
Flacco has a tough task in front of him and must shake off his last performance in order to pull off an upset. The first-round pick threw two costly interceptions in last Sunday's loss to Tennessee and had a third one taken back after a successful challenge by Harbaugh. In his defense, Flacco is coming off games against two tough defenses in Pittsburgh and Tennessee.
SERIES HISTORY
The Colts have a 5-2 edge in their all-time regular season series with the Ravens, including four straight victories. Indianapolis handed Baltimore a 44-20 defeat at M&T Bank Stadium in Week 14 of last season, and took a 20-10 decision when the clubs last met in Indianapolis, in 2002. The Ravens are 0-3 all-time in Indy.
In addition to the regular season series, the teams have met once in the postseason, with Indy scoring a 15-6 road win in a 2006 AFC Divisional Playoff en route to a Super Bowl title.
Colts head coach Tony Dungy is 6-0 all-time against the Ravens, including a win while he was at the helm of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2001. Harbaugh will be meeting both Dungy and the Colts for the first time as a head coach.
The Colts franchise called Baltimore home from 1953 through the 1983 season.
WHEN THE RAVENS HAVE THE BALL
Flacco (603 passing yards, 1 TD, 4 INT) has led the Ravens to a 2-2 record and currently sports a 61.9 passer rating. He is starting to grasp the offense after he throw for just 129 yards in each of his first two starts with a total of two interceptions and no touchdowns. Flacco was not sacked for the second time this season last week and the offensive line has given up just six sacks in the team's four games. Wide receiver Derrick Mason (21 receptions, 261 yards) is taking advantage of Flacco's extra time in the pocket and has led the Ravens in receptions in each game this season. Mason, who is third in the NFL with 469 catches since 2003, leads the Ravens in catches this year and finished with 38 yards on five receptions last week. He did suffer a thumb injury during the game, but Harbaugh noted that his top wideout should be fine this week. Tight end Todd Heap (7 receptions) has been missing in action and needs to be more involved in the offense. He's averaged 13 yards per catch against the Colts for his career, having totaled 143 yards on 11 receptions. Tight end Daniel Wilcox (2 receptions, 1 TD) has the only receiving touchdown for the Ravens' lowly 31st-rated pass attack.
Indianapolis' secondary suffered a big blow with the loss of starting cornerback Kelvin Hayden (17 tackles, 1 INT), who won't play against Baltimore because of a left knee injury. Tim Jennings likely will move from the nickel to cornerback to replace Hayden, while Dante Hughes is expected to move to the nickel spot. Cornerback Marlin Jackson (26 tackles) led the stop unit last week with 11 tackles for the Colts, who re-signed cornerback Keiwan Ratliff and signed second-year cornerback Nick Graham during the week. Jackson suffered an ankle injury against Houston, but is expected to be fine. The absence of Pro Bowl safety Bob Sanders (13 tackles) has been huge for both the secondary and run defense, as he has missed the last two games with an ankle problem. Sanders is expected to miss more time, but recently said on his television show that he is feeling better. Melvin Bullitt (22 tackles, 1 INT) has filled in nicely as Sanders' replacement.
Ravens running back Willis McGahee seems to be back in form after a recent chest injury and contributed 64 yards on a season-high 22 carries against the Titans. McGahee was limited in practice with an ankle problem this week, however, and has been sharing time with second-year running back Le'Ron McClain, who has been huge for the Ravens in goal-line situations. McClain (266 rushing yards, 4 TD) had 51 yards and a touchdown on 11 touches last week and has scored in three straight games. He has also converted five third or fourth-and-1 scenarios, the most in the conference. McGahee and the 260-pound McClain have helped Baltimore to the fourth-best ground attack in the NFL (153.8 ypg). The two backs may not be able to run behind right tackle Adam Terry, who sprained his right knee in the second quarter of Sunday's loss and left the game. He was replaced by four-time Pro Bowl selection Willie Anderson. Terry did not practice early in the week and tackle Jared Gaither (knee) was limited.
Indianapolis is the worst team in the NFL in defending the run, having allowed an average of 188.5 yards per game on the ground. It can only hope the Ravens will be off their running game this Sunday. Houston ran for 156 yards on the Colts last week, with rookie Steve Slaton tallying 93 yards and two scores on 16 carries. All-Pro defensive end Dwight Freeney (10 tackles, 3 sacks) suffered a hamstring injury against the Texans and missed some practice time this week. He has been battling injuries over the past few years. Middle linebacker Brackett (32 tackles) is a vital piece of the Colts' defense and earned the AFC Defensive Player of the Week honors for his five tackles and 68-yard fumble recovery for a touchdown at Houston. Linebacker Freddy Keiaho (39 tackles) is tops on the team in tackles and chipped in eight last week.
WHEN THE COLTS HAVE THE BALL
Manning (1,031 passing yards, 5 TD, 5 INT) is coming off an impressive fourth- quarter showing at Houston and leads all NFL quarterbacks in passing yards (7,892) and touchdown passes (60) in the final period since 2000. Manning, who is a few months removed from undergoing surgery to remove an infected bursa sac in his left knee, has a touchdown pass in every game this season and owns a 4-2 career record against Baltimore. In his past three meetings with the Ravens, Manning has completed 54-of-86 pass attempts for 752 yards, seven touchdowns and no interceptions for a 118.0 quarterback rating. His favorite target is no surprise, as wideout Reggie Wayne (25 receptions, 350 yards, 3 TD) is averaging 87.5 receiving yards per game and has reached the end zone in three of the past four contests. Wayne had 97 yards and a score on seven catches last week. Future Hall of Fame receiver Marvin Harrison (17 receptions, 1 TD) has contributed sparingly in 2008 after missing most of last season with a knee injury. Slot receiver Anthony Gonzalez (17 receptions) and tight end Dallas Clark (10 receptions) are also expected to contribute during this vital AFC matchup, although Gonzalez (concussion) did not practice early in the week. Rookie offensive guards Jamey Richard and Mike Pollak are expected to start again, while Charlie Johnson may fill in again at left tackle for starter Tony Ugoh, who missed last week with a groin injury and is questionable to return.
Baltimore will face a challenge against Manning and Indy's high-powered offense, but on the bright side. the club has the best pass defense in the NFL. The Ravens are allowing just 128.5 passing yards a game this season and gave Titans quarterback Kerry Collins some problems last week. Collins threw for just 163 yards and was intercepted by Pro Bowl cornerback Chris McAlister (10 tackles, 3 INT) and defensive tackle Justin Bannan (15 tackles, 1 sack, 1 INT). McAlister posted his third interception of the season and the 26th of his career to move past Lewis into second place on the Ravens' all-time list. Safety Ed Reed is first with 35 interceptions. McAlister and Reed (10 tackles, 1 INT) have helped the Ravens limit opposing quarterbacks to a 46.2 percent completion rate, while allowing three touchdowns and intercepting seven passes. In injury news for the Baltimore secondary, cornerback Fabian Washington (4 tackles) suffered a sprained shoulder last week and missed some practice time. Frank Walker (6 tackles) replaced Washington on the opposite side of McAlister, finishing with four tackles and three passes defensed versus Tennessee. The Ravens are already without cornerback Samari Rolle (3 tackles, 1 INT), who is out at least a month after having surgery on his neck last week.
Colts running back Joseph Addai (213 rushing yards, 4 TD) will face another stingy run defense on Sunday and has yet to reach the 100-yard rushing mark this season. Addai had 71 yards and a score on 17 touches at the Texans and has scored in three straight games. He will most likely be held under the century mark again, since Indianapolis is last in rushing offense this season (67.8 ypg). Addai posted a pair of rushing touchdowns in the last meeting with Baltimore.
Baltimore will bring out its top-ranked run defense Sunday and has allowed an average of 64 yards a game on the ground. The unit is coming a stifling performance against Tennessee in which it held the Titans to just 47 yards rushing, the fewest the team has allowed all season. That extended Baltimore's run of 23 games without allowing a 100-yard rusher. Tennessee was averaging 137.0 rushing yards a game, eighth-best in the league, before the contest. Lewis (29 tackles), who had seven stops last week, owns 74 tackles in six games against the Colts. Linebacker Terrell Suggs (17 tackles, 3 sacks) has recorded three sacks over the past three games. In injury news for the Baltimore front three, tackle Kelly Gregg was placed on injured reserve after having arthroscopic microfracture knee surgery Tuesday. Bannan will remain the starter at nose guard, while the team signed third-year tackle Brandon McKinney this week. McKinney was released by the San Diego Chargers over the weekend.
FANTASY FOCUS
Manning, Wayne, Addai and placekicker Adam Vinatieri are weekly starters for fantasy owners. Manning has been playing subpar football this season, but is still a threat to rip off three or four TD passes in a game. It won't happen this week, however. Addai will also have trouble Sunday against Baltimore's top-rated defense, but Wayne has been hot each week. Expect Vinatieri to be used often after the Colts are denied entry into the end zone on more than one occasion. The Ravens' defense is the way to go for this matchup, with McGahee and McClain eating up fantasy points on offense. If you're desperate for a starting quarterback for Week 6, it wouldn't hurt to go with Flacco.
OVERALL ANALYSIS
Sunday's matchup between Indianapolis and Baltimore will be a low-scoring affair won by the Colts, their first victory in brand new Lucas Oil Stadium. Indy does not want to match an 11-year-old record by losing its first three games at home, and will use an uncharacteristic strong effort from the defense to ride off with a victory. Manning will put forth another good game against a tough Ravens defense with mistake-free football. His back has been up against the wall all season, and recent talks about his brother Eli being the better quarterback of the two will be swept under the rug. Granted that Eli's New York Giants are undefeated, but the bigger brother will prove his mettle Sunday afternoon in front of an impatient home crowd hungry for a win. Manning will also have to beat Baltimore with his arm, since Addai will have trouble finding holes against Lewis and the Ravens. Special teams and field positioning will be the deciding factor in this weekend's matchup between AFC powerhouses.
Sports Network Predicted Outcome: Colts 17, Ravens 10
