Ravens cornerback Samari Rolle missed his third straight practice yesterday, and the team ruled him out for Sunday's game against the Cleveland Browns.
Rolle and coach Brian Billick said the problem is not the illness that sidelined Rolle last Thursday and Friday, but the medication administered for the illness.
Billick said the treatment has made Rolle lethargic, with little energy to practice. Rolle had his own diagnosis.
"I'm off," he said yesterday after practice. "I can't play. As far as being straight and balanced and coordinated, I'm not."
Said Billick: "It's evidently something that he is going to have to monitor for a while. I hesitate to make comparisons because everybody will go, 'Oh, my God, you mean he has ... ' No. But it takes medication, and you have to have the right balance. That's the best I can offer you."
The coach and player declined to disclose the exact nature of the ailment, and Rolle said he's not trying to rush himself back into action.
"Honestly, I'm just happy that I'm better now and that I get to come around with my family and my teammates," he said. "It's something I've got to deal with, and when I feel better or when they can figure out the medication thing, then I think I'll be back."
Cornerback Corey Ivy, who started in place of Rolle in Sunday's 26-23 win against the Arizona Cardinals, said he would be ready to start again.
"Every week, you've got to go out and prepare like a starter because this is a physical game and you don't know who's going to go down," Ivy said.
In other injury-related news, offensive tackle Jonathan Ogden said his sprained left foot and hyperextended left toe is much improved compared with last week, but he hesitated to say he's ready to play against Cleveland.
"Today, I was able to go out there and do some stuff," said Ogden, who participated fully in practice. "So that's progress, and you've got to be happy with that. ... But it's still going to be a game-time [decision]. There's no doubt about it."
Linebackers Ray Lewis (ankle) and Gary Stills (knee) and wide receivers Mark Clayton (calf) and Demetrius Williams (heel) were limited in practice. Quarterback Steve McNair (pulled groin) and tight end Todd Heap (concussion) said they feel better and would play Sunday.
Not celebrating
Wide receiver Devard Darling said the NFL fined him $7,500 for his unsportsmanlike-conduct penalty Sunday.
Darling was flagged for following rookie Yamon Figurs into the stands at M&T; Bank Stadium after Figurs had returned a punt 75 yards for a touchdown in the second quarter. League rules state no more than one player is allowed to leap into the stands in celebration.
"The league, they have their rules, and we have to abide by them," said Darling, who will lose 15 percent of his weekly paycheck. "It was $7,500, man. I'm hurting right now. I won't be jumping into the stands anymore."
Williams, who was assessed an unsportsmanlike-conduct penalty for what officials called spiking the football after making a catch, said he was not fined.
Toxic comments?
It's safe to say linebacker Bart Scott won't be the most welcome man in Cleveland on Sunday.
Scott, one of the most engaging personalities in the Ravens' locker room, was asked what he thought of Cleveland Browns Stadium.
Scott, who initially thought the stadium was next to a junkyard, was corrected by Kevin Byrne, the team's senior vice president of public and community relations, who informed him the stadium is built on a former landfill.
"It's built on a landfill and it's toxic, and I think it gets to some of the fans' heads a little bit," Scott said. "They struck up the lake and put it on a landfill, and all of the algae and stuff is coming up through the end zone. ...
"Before I go out there and play on the field, I put some hydrocortisone on to make sure that I'll be straight when I hit the ground."
Practice field switch
For the first time this season, the Ravens practiced on the field farthest from the team's training facility in Owings Mills. Billick said the grass on that field is the same kind as at the Browns' stadium. "We'll give it back at the end of the week," the coach joked. "But I wanted them to practice on the same surface they're going to play on Sunday."
edward.lee@baltsun.com