Editor: Joe Bryant. Game Recap Contributors: Mike Anderson, Michael Brown, Chris Burtt, J.D. Caldwell, David Dodds, Bobby Elder, Jim Enochs, Joel Faulhaber, Michael Flynn, Kevin Goldblum, Clayton Gray, Bob Harris, Fred Hebert, Jesse Hilsenrad, Drew Kendall, Jeff Lewis, Joey Matusek, Justin Oliver, Steve Prosapio, David Shick, Cody Smith, Scott Smith, Jeffrey Stout. Baltimore 26 at Cleveland 21 WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW Baltimore Ravens: RB Jamal Lewis was a workhorse again. He didn't look hesitant or shy away from contact at all. Knee injury? You can't tell from watching him. The Baltimore offensive line pushed around the Cleveland front four in the second half after wearing them down early. Lewis was explosive with several long runs in the second half. QB Chris Redman managed a great ball control offense on national TV two weeks in a row. Baltimore looks content to smash away with their O-line and Jamal Lewis giving Redman few chances to make plays downfield. TE Todd Heap is still the #1 option in the passing game for the Ravens. 7 of his 8 targets were in the first half including a deep ball down the sideline. When the game was in hand, the Ravens choose to pound the ball with Lewis to chew up the clock. All World LB Ray Lewis watched much of the 2nd half from the sidelines with an injured shoulder. He reportedly would have been able to play if necessary but the coaches held him out. Obviously, watch this closely as he's the heart of this terrific defense. Cleveland Browns: QB Kelly Holcombe almost brought the Browns screaming back to victory after a Tim Couch concussion. The Ravens were content to play prevent defense and let Holcombe sit back and survey the field even though he was limping noticeably. The fans were yelling for Holcombe even before Couch was injured. RB Jamel White continues to show flashes while William Green makes Cleveland fans cringe. Green was given two carries early in the game. One gets the feeling that they will continue to give Green chances to shine even if he doesn't produce. WHAT YOU OUGHT TO KNOW Baltimore Ravens QB: Chris Redman: 19-30-208 (2 TD). Redman managed another great ball control game and made no glaring errors on the evening. He was given few opportunities to make plays down field, but when he had the chances he took advantage of them. It looks like the Baltimore coaching staff is going to keep a tight rein on Redman for the time being. Until they start giving him more chances to win games downfield, Heap will be the featured weapon in the Baltimore passing game. RB: Jamal Lewis: 26-187 yards rushing, 5-26 yards receiving (5 targets). Lewis was solid in the first half with 49 yards on 14 carries. Baltimore continued to pound away and wear down the Cleveland defensive line through the second half and it paid off big for Lewis. He exploded for several long carries in the third and fourth quarters. The game plan for a winning season in Baltimore is going to be a steady diet of Jamal Lewis. WR: Brandon Stokley: 4-78 yards receiving (6 targets). Stokley was a non-factor during the first quarter, but came up big with two long TD catches later on. Travis Taylor: 4-41 yards receiving (8 targets). Taylor was targeted four times in the game (all incomplete) before Stokley erupted in the second quarter. It was apparent that Baltimore was putting extra effort into getting Taylor involved. TE: Todd Heap: 4-53 yards receiving (8 targets). Todd Heap is starting to establish himself as one of the more dangerous TE threats in the NFL. He is most certainly the first option in the Baltimore passing game now. Pass Defense: Baltimore gave up 396 yards passing, but also picked off 4 passes. Baltimore pulled off the pass rush (2 sacks) after they built up the 23-point lead and paid the price. During the final sequence Northcutt got his hand on a ball in the endzone. Rush Defense: 62 yards on 17 rushes? That's stuffing the run. Especially when you consider the Cleveland RBs only had a total of 36 yards in the game. Special Teams: Stover was perfect on FG duty (4-4). Sort of reminiscent of 2 years ago when he led kickers in scoring. The kick coverage unit almost blew the game by not covering the kicker on the onsides kick late in the game. /**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/** Cleveland Browns QB: Tim Couch: 16-26-216 (1 TD, 2 INT), 2-14 yards rushing. Couch's first INT was a deflected ball. His second INT was horribly under thrown. It could have been worse as he threw the ball into coverage several times on the night, but at the same time he showed a mostly strong and accurate arm. He left the game with a concussion. Kelly Holcombe: 13-23-180 (2 TD, 2 INT) 2-9 yards rushing. The crowd began calling for Holcombe during the third quarter after Couch's second INT. He didn't disappoint when Couch went down after a crushing hit in the fourth quarter. Holcombe (limping all over the field) did put points on the board, but also threw two INTS of his own. Holcombe also forced several balls that could have turned into INTs as well. RB: Jamel White: 7-34 yards rushing, 4-36 yards receiving (8 targets). White can't seem to pin down the starting job in Cleveland. He was quick and nimble getting to the little bit of room to run. White's largest obstacle to getting more carries in Cleveland probably isn't Green, but the woeful run blocking by the Cleveland offensive line and being down 20+ points. William Green: 4-2 yards rushing. The Browns don't want to give up on Green. He only got four carries and was not targeted with any passes. On two of his carries he was terribly hesitant and danced instead of lowering his shoulders and pounding. On his best carry (3 yards) he did attack the line hard, but was booed by the home town crowd that clearly prefers Jamel White. WR: TEAM NOTE: This team has 4 options at WR. The fantasy football community would love to just have Kevin Johnson be the #1 guy in Cleveland, but its not hard to see why Cleveland struggled in making the decision to sign him instead of dealing him earlier this season. Morgan, Northcutt, and Davis are a talented young trio. Any one of these four might lead the team in receiving statistics on any given Sunday. Each of the four WRs were targeted throughout the game. Kevin Johnson: 4-36 yards receiving (7 targets). Quincy Morgan: 5-68 yards receiving (7 targets). When Cleveland needed 2 point conversions to stay in the game, their go to WR was Morgan on a corner fade and on a reverse. He was called for offensive pass interference on the second play, but he fought for the ball. Dennis Northcutt: 8-165 yards receiving (2 TD - 11 targets). As soon as Holcombe came into the game Northcutt became the featured WR. He was targeted 9 times by Holcombe in the fourth quarter including his 2 TDs. Andre Davis: 5-73 yards receiving (7 targets). TE: Matt Campbell had a 2 yard TD to get Cleveland on the board off of a play action fake at the goal line. However, it was evident that the Cleveland TEs were not a part of the game plan. Pass Defense: Cleveland only gave up 208 yards passing, but they put no pressure on Redman. They allowed Baltimore to complete nearly two thirds of their passes including getting burned on two 30+ yard TDs. Rush Defense: The Cleveland front seven was solid in the first half, but wore down in the second half. Jamal Lewis broke several long runs later in the game. Special Teams: The Phil Dawson onsides kick play was well designed and executed. In the second quarter Cleveland elected to direct snap the ball to Dawson rather than let him attempt a long FG (49 yards).