Is it possible for Ed Reed to have the ball in his hands without lateraling it?
Recent evidence suggests that it isn't. Reed caused the hearts of the Ravens coaching staff to skip a beat Sunday against the New England Patriots when he intercepted Tom Brady's pass, then flipped the ball to Dawan Landry as he was being tackled in the first quarter. That lateral was beneficial to the Ravens, with Landry advancing it nearly 20 yards. But tonight's playoff opponents, the Indianapolis Colts, call to mind Reed's worst lateral of the season, when he fumbled on a punt return with 17 seconds left and the Ravens trailing 17-15.
Reed's penchant for trying to turn a good play into a great play puts the Ravens coaches in a bit of an awkward position. You have to take the Good Reed with the Bad Reed.
"We encourage our guys to make good decisions, and good decisions are usually judged by the result," Ravens coach John Harbaugh said. "When it turns out to be a good decision, you can easily see why after the fact. My first thought, I'm going to be honest with you, when he was running up the sideline, is not to do it. My first thought is secure the football. But he had a situation that we do practice where he had Dawan in great position. He had control of the ball - nobody was near the ball - and he had free access to get it to Dawan. So he made a good decision, and it worked out."
Reed wasn't thrilled when his unsuccessful lateral against the Colts came up again this week. He said he had no regrets.
"I would never change my game regardless of any play," Reed said. "If I feel like it's there, I'm going to go with it. It's not about being successful or unsuccessful. It's about winning, and at the end of the day, there was 17 seconds left on the clock. We had 59 minutes and something seconds to win the game with many other plays. So one play didn't make the game. Yeah, it probably would have gave us a chance, but what chance are you going to do on a great defense with 17 seconds left and no timeouts?"
Now hear this
Ravens center Matt Birk, who before this season spent his entire career with the Minnesota Vikings playing in the Metrodome, said the notion that noise is a big factor in a dome such as the Colts' Lucas Oil Stadium is a bit overstated.
"I think every stadium is loud, you know?" Birk said. "It can only get so loud. If you can't hear, you can't hear. It's not like you can't hear more, or you can't hear [less]. But certainly that's a place where the fans get into it. They've got great fans. Every time you go on the road, you've got to be able to deal with it."
Barnes back in mix
It has been quite the roller-coaster season for outside linebacker Antwan Barnes. He started the year as a regular member of the Ravens' pass rush rotation, but he lost the confidence of the coaching staff. After recording seven tackles in the first three games, he was inactive for seven of the next nine.
But by the end of the regular season, he had earned his way back into the rotation, and in the Ravens' final two games, he recorded two key sacks, including one against the Oakland Raiders that caused a fumble and sealed the game - and a playoff berth.
"It was just being patient," Barnes said. "They're just trying to use guys to the best of their abilities. I know I can play this game, but I've just got to show the coaches I can do it. Once I get that opportunity, I can do it."
Lewis savors moment
Every year that Ray Lewis plays, the Ravens' linebacker appreciates the chance of making a Super Bowl run even more.
Lewis won a Super Bowl with the Ravens in his fifth NFL season. Now, nine years later, he is still trying to get back.
"Definitely for an old-school player like myself, it's trying to get those guys to understand how important it is and how beautiful it is just to really always have the opportunity to fight for one," Lewis said.
Baltimore Sun reporter Jamison Hensley contributed to this article.