The hardest part of Jamal Lewis' afternoon may have been selecting its most fulfilling aspect.

Early deficits restricted the running back's action against the Pittsburgh Steelers and Atlanta Falcons the two previous games, as he combined for 25 carries in those two losses. The Ravens never trailed the Cincinnati Bengals yesterday, and on the first snap he peeled off 7 yards.

He didn't stop until he had 135, the fourth-best total of a 25-game career in which he has compiled 2,145 rushing yards, the most in Ravens history. After losing fumbles in four of the previous six games, Lewis had a solid handle on all 21 of his carries, but that didn't rate No. 1 in his book. He got his second touchdown on his last carry, and what was sweetest of all was that it came with more than six minutes remaining.

"It's big, it's big," Lewis said of feeling fresh at the end of a November win, even against 1-8 Cincinnati.

It was the eighth 100-yard game of Lewis' career - 10th when the 2000 postseason is included - and the Ravens are unbeaten when he hits triple figures.

"I owe it all to the line," Lewis said. "We went out and played physical. The coach [Brian Billick] said we were going to put the ball in their court, and that's what we did. We pounded them and played physical. We got the ball early, established a rhythm, and our offensive line knows the strengths and weaknesses of a defense.

"Our line knows what it's like to intimidate a defense like that."

Lewis described some challenging blocking assignments and Cincinnati coach Dick LeBeau cited his runs up the middle as a counter to the Bengals' stunts. Lewis was a prominent half of a balanced attack, as the Ravens netted 163 yards in the air, 162 on the ground.

The coaches talk about the patience Lewis shows in waiting for holes to open, but yesterday he also had to bide his time and wait for the Bengals to tire. After that promising first carry, his next five rushes gained 7 yards. On the opening play of the Ravens' first possession in the second quarter, however, he went up the middle and bounced left for a 31-yard gain, the second longest of his career.

Lewis carried five straight times to the Cincinnati 1 on the third-quarter drive that finished with a short touchdown pass to Travis Taylor. In the fourth quarter, Jeff Blake lost a fumble off Lewis' thigh pad, but the Ravens got the ball right back on Ed Reed's second interception.

Lewis finished a three-play, 19-yard drive, then relaxed as rookie Chester Taylor iced the win with three carries on the game's last possession.

"In the second half, we had a chance to wear them down," center Mike Flynn said. "They got a little tired, we got a lead and Jamal got stronger. That's the way he wants to run. If we can do that the second half of the season, we can win some games."

Ravens rushers

Jamal Lewis became the Ravens' career leading rusher with yesterday's 135-yard performance. The top five:

Player...Yrs. ...Att. ...Yds.

Jamal Lewis...'00-02...489...2,145

P. Holmes...'97-00...459...2,102

Bam Morris...'96-97...376...1,511

Errict Rhett...'98-99...280...1,032

E. Byner...'96-97...243...947