hines ward

Nobody does pre-game like NBC¿s ¿Football Night in America.¿ The telecast came out smoking Sunday with Bob Costas, Chris Collinsworth and Al Michaels sounding amped even for the pre-game to the matchup between the Pittsburgh Steelers and Baltimore Ravens.

The Ravens and the Steelers renew the hardest-hitting rivalry in the NFL on Sunday night.

Step into the rivalry: Ravens vs. Steelers. Baltimore players tell you what it feels like to be part of perhaps the best matchup in sports.

Ravens defensive tackle Haloti Ngata is listed as probable for the Ravens' game against the Steelers on Sunday night.

Two-time Pro Bowler's status unclear

Ravens punter Sam Koch is not worried about retaliation from the Steelers after he ran in a trick two-point conversion against them in the season opener.

Terrell Suggs got the trash talk going on Wednesday, saying that the Ravens are "the enemy of the state" in Pittsburgh and that "we think their piss is going to be a little hot" on Sunday. ... The Ravens will have to cut down on penalties to beat the Steelers. ... Ben Grubbs returned to practice. ... The Orioles will interview a fifth candidate, Scott Proefrock, for their vacant general manager position. ... Somebody in the O's organization made roster moves on Wednesday. ... Alex Len was cleared by the NCAA to practice, but he will miss the first 10 games of Maryland's season. ... Is there a rift between Capitals coach Bruce Boudreau and superstar Alex Ovechkin?

Linebacker Terrell Suggs declares Ravens an 'enemy of the state' in Pittsburgh

Both the Ravens and Steelers have been hurt by unsportsmanlike conduct penalties

Evans, Ngata, D.Reed miss portion of practice available to media

Ravens cornerback points to Brown's prowess on kick, punt returns

Coach John Harbaugh says the Ravens have just as much motivation to win Sunday as the Steelers

We've reached the quarter pole of the NFL season, and it's probably fair to say we still don't quite know what to make of this Ravens team.

Titans running back Chris Johnson on Wednesday claimed the Ravens attempted to injure him in the playoffs three years ago. Now the Steelers are accusing the Ravens of dirty play in the Ravens' 35-7 win on Sunday.

Ray Lewis and Ed Reed have not expressed a desire to retire. ... Lee Evans, who didn't have a catch in his Ravens debut Sunday, missed Wednesday's practice as he continues to be hobbled by a sore left ankle. ... Chris Carr saw a specialist in Texas this week to get another opinion on his injured hamstring. ... Jeremy Guthrie delivered one of his strongest performances of the year and the Orioles slammed three home runs in a 6-2 victory over the Rays on Wednesday night. ... Brian Matusz could pitch again this season.

Bernard Pollard says Ravens won't back down from physical Steelers

Maryland said Tuesday that it will name the Comcast Center basketball court for former men's coach Gary Williams. ... Running back D.J. Adams, who was suspended for Maryland's opening game, is back in the mix for Saturday's game against West Virginia. ... Ravens coach John Harbaugh said that Sergio Kindle will be active soon. ... Ravens rookie cornerback Jimmy Smith has officially been diagnosed with a high ankle sprain and will be out a "few weeks." ... The Ravens will be on the cover of Sports Illustrated this week. ... Matt Wieters slammed a two-run home run with two outs in the bottom of the eighth inning on Tuesday night to give the Orioles a 4-2 win over the Rays. ... Adam Jones missed his fourth straight start.

The Ravens will be entering team meetings this afternoon, and the highlight of the defensive meetings will be outside linebacker Jarret Johnson¿s hit on Pittsburgh wide receiver Hines Ward.

Mike Preston's Ravens report card

Perhaps the most interesting competition between now and Week 1 for the Ravens is at cornerback, where five players are jockeying for two starting positions.

Let's jump in the time machine and flash back in time to the early 2000s when Tom Cruise wasn't a known crazy person, "Freedom Fries" were an innovation in redneck culinary circles and men under the age of 40 wearing visors in public was considered to be socially acceptable. Thanks to Al Gore's Internet invention, fantasy football was starting to blow up -- and we were advised to select running backs with our first 13 or so picks.

Ravens: Owner Steve Bisciotti hired John Harbaugh to unite the offense and defense; he also thinks a new contract for Haloti Ngata could be finalized soon

The Orioles expected their negotiations with Dylan Bundy to go right down to Monday night's midnight deadline, and it did, but they got the deal done (the Orioles signed two other top targets, too). ... The Orioles had a winning night on the field as well, beating the Athletics in Oakland. ... Brian Matusz on Tuesday night will make his first major-league start in more than a month. ... Orioles shortstop J.J. Hardy was named the American League Player of the Week. ... David Reed was activated from the physically-unable-to-perform list, and he expressed a desire to be a more regular member of the Ravens offense.

NFL players are expected to recommend the labor deal Monday, which would move the league one step closer to ending the lockout. That's good news for Ravens free agents such as Josh Wilson who are waiting for the end of the lockout to make their career move. ... Ed Reed thinks Hines Ward is a dirty player and said he has told him. ... The Orioles wasted another quality start from Jeremy Guthrie on Sunday, losing to the Angels, 9-3. ... There is growing speculation that Koji Uehara will be moved before the July 31 trade deadline. ... Dundalk native Bucky Lasek made history Sunday night, winning his Dew Tour-record 10th skateboard vert final.

The NFL players' leadership is expected to recommend the labor deal Monday, which would move the league one step closer to ending the lockout. Josh Wilson, though, will believe it when he sees it.

The Red Sox found yet another way to humiliate the Orioles on Monday night, breaking a tie with an eight-run eighth inning on their way to a 15-10 win. ... Andy MacPhail said he received "legitimate interest" from clubs about J.J. Hardy, but he felt the Orioles should keep Hardy instead of dealing him away for prospects. ... Alfredo Simon was headed back to the United States on Monday night after attending a legal hearing in the Dominican Republic and could return to the team by Tuesday. ... Kevin Gregg is still miffed about his suspension. ... Ravens running back Ray Rice said he never intended to disrespect Hines Ward when he commented about the Steelers wide receiver's DUI arrest a week ago, but he still stands by his remarks.

Ravens: Ravens' Ray Rice stands by remarks about arrest of Steelers' Hines Ward. Running back's cousin was killed by a drunken driver.

I guess Ray Lewis was right when he said that crime in the AFC North would go up during the NFL lockout. OK, that isn¿t exactly what he said, but whatever. Four players from the division have been arrested in the past 10 days, pulling the AFC North into five-way tie for arrests since the lockout started on March 11.

Has any NFL player who hasn't been arrested, freed from jail or spoken about others going to jail during the lockout gotten more publicity than Joe Flacco?

Steelers linebacker LaMarr Woodley ruffled the feathers of Ravens fans last week when he told NFL Network that Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco would never win a Super Bowl ¿in his lifetime.¿

Brian Matusz returned to the mound Wednesday and Adam Jones hit the game-winning homer to help the Orioles snap their five-game losing skid. ... Jones put his modesty aside when discussing his leaping catch in the fourth inning of the 2-1 win over the Mariners. ... Nick Markakis played his first career game at first base. ... To make room for Matusz, the Orioles designated Jake Fox for assignment. ... Navy has indicated interest in talking to Maryland men's lacrosse coach John Tillman about its coaching vacancy. ... Three-sport standouts Darius Jennings from Gilman and Taylor Cummings from McDonogh were named our Athletes of the Year.

Orioles top pitching prospect Dan Klein is a fast riser, but whether he is a reliever or starter hasn't been decided. ... Orioles second base prospect LJ Hoes was promoted Monday. ... A select group of Ravens -- primarily offensive skill players -- will gather at Towson on Tuesday for the first of three straight days of conditioning drills. ... Shackleford wasn't the only big winner at the Preakness. ... Navy hired Penn State's Ed DeChellis as men's basketball coach.

Tuesday's game in Boston was rained out, so Orioles rookie pitcher Zach Britton will get the start at Camden Yards Wednesday against the Yankees. ... First baseman Derrek Lee and shortstop Cesar Izturis are likely headed to the disabled list. ... Orioles pitcher Alfredo Simon will go to trial, a judge has ruled, according to an Associated Press report. Meanwhile, Simon is nearing a return to the team. ... Mark Turgeon finalized his coaching staff and got more good news when Nick Faust reaffirmed his commitment to the Terps. ... Despite the rain, Animal Kingdom had another strong workout, perhaps his most focused since arriving in Maryland.

I'm not sure how many of you regularly watch ABC's "Dancing With the Stars," but I suspect that number will dwindle now that Steelers wide receiver Hines Ward is joining the cast for the show's 12th season. Well, unless you're hoping Ward will hammer host Tom Bergeron on a crack-back block.