todd heap

Six days after a frustrating loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars, the Ravens host the Arizona Cardinals and get a chance to put that wreck in their rearview mirrors.

Sunday represents a second homecoming for former Raven Todd Heap. The tight end hopes to face his old team for the first time signed he returned to his native Arizona to play for the Cardinals.

Seven-time Pro Bowl free safety Ed Reed did not practice Thursday, the Ravens confirmed.

Ravens notebook: Ray Rice, Terrell Suggs moving on from Ravens' loss to Jaguars

Some of Joe Flacco's stats are alarming, but he's shown signs of adapting to new teammates

With Lee Evans out, Joe Flacco may need to learn to trust a rookie — or three

You tight ends caught a total of seven passes and were solid blockers

Kevin Van Valkenburg analyzes the Ravens' convincing season-opening win agaist rival Pittsburgh

Baltimore Ravens: The new-look Ravens delivered a season-opening stomping of the Pittsburgh Steelers, an authoritative statement that rippled through the AFC North and the rest of the NFL.

After losing to the Steelers in the playoffs, the Ravens addressed the problems that cost them most

As the Baltimore Ravens open their season, fans wonder are hoping for Super Bowl appearance.

With 13 new players and a renewed focus on running the ball, the Ravens may need time to grow

The Orioles and Yankees waited more than four hours for the rain to relent late Tuesday night at Yankee Stadium. The game started after 11 p.m. and the Yankees won. ... Brian Matusz has been removed from the starting rotation. ... The Ravens gambled on players with troubled pasts, but they did their homework as far as background checks. ... One game into the season, there is a sense of excitement surrounding Maryland's young team after the win over Miami. ... Randy Edsall likes the buzz about Maryland's new football uniforms. ... The inaugural Baltimore Grand Prix boosted some businesses while disappointing others.

The Ravens continued to tinker with their roster over the weekend, signing Pro Bowl center Andre Gurode to bolster the offensive line. It was the third significant roster move the Ravens have made since the start of the preseason; they also addressed areas of concern by bringing in wideout Lee Evans and tackle Bryant McKinnie.

The Ravens must cut their active roster down to 53 mighty men on Saturday. Here is my projection of what the roster will look like, but please note that John Harbaugh and his staff are better at evaluating talent than I am.

Joe Flacco's long-toss abilities finally find an able receiver in Lee Evans

Baltimore is blessed with a bunch of talented sports bloggers who bring their unique perspective to the conversation. I often link up to these local writers in my morning Coffee Companion posts, but instead of just exchanging anti-social links with them, I have decided to be slightly less anti-social by exchanging emails with them in a somewhat regular feature called Blogger on Blogger.

A lack of big plays in 2010 prompted the Ravens to overhaul their passing attack (again). They cut ties with veterans Derrick Mason, Todd Heap and T.J. Houshmandazeh; brought in speedy veteran wide receiver Lee Evans; drafted a pair of rookie wideouts in Torrey Smith and Tandon Doss; and went with youth at tight end, where second-year players Ed Dickson and Ed Pitta have both spent time with the first-team offense.

There are very few slam-dunk picks in fantasy football. For years owning LaDainian Tomlinson guaranteed you a spot in the playoffs. Peyton Manning has been an elite fantasy QB for more than a decade. And though he's now in the twilight of his career, Terrell Owens used to be good for 1,000 yards and 10 TDs a season. Chargers tight end Antonio Gates falls into this category.

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.

Dennis Pitta, a second-year tight end, started in the Ravens' 13-6 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles in the preseason opener for both teams last Thursday.

Autographed memorabilia that once belonged to legendary athletes, actors and musicians now fill the hallways, giving Howard prosecutors a set of conversation pieces that help "break the ice" in interviews.

Effort against NFL's 'Dream Team' shows how far Ravens have to go

I know this one was ugly to watch, but don¿t fret. Not only was it the first preseason game, it was the first preseason game after a lengthy lockout.

The NFL preseason is already upon us -- the days have been flying by since the lockout ended, haven¿t they? -- and the Ravens¿ exhibition opener against the Eagles is one of a handful of games on Thursday night¿s slate.

Nolan Reimold slammed Jason Frasor's first pitch into the visitors' bullpen on Wednesday night to give the Orioles a walk-off win in extra innings. ... Adam Jones and Ozzie Guillen exchanged words after the game. ... Vladimir Guerrero was given a day off, but manager Buck Showalter said not to read too much into it. ... The Ravens play the NFL's "Dream Team" in their preseason opener on Thursday night. John Harbaugh expects to get "cheered rabidly." ... Joe Flacco said he told team officials that he wanted tight end Todd Heap to return. ... Free-agent wide receiver Jerricho Cotchery won't be joining the Ravens after visiting the team Tuesday.

While the Eagles made headlines with big-name signings, the Ravens will rely on young players stepping up

Quarterback Joe Flacco is scheduled to play the first quarter of the Ravens' preseason opener at the Philadelphia Eagles on Thursday night. Backups Tyrod Taylor and Hunter Cantwell know how much playing time they will get, too.

Ravens notes: With Birk injured, Bryan Mattison gets a chance at center Son of former defensive coordinator Greg Mattison played center on the scout team last season