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Mysteries of the unknown Less-familiar Raiders pose more of a challenge for Ravens
OWINGS MILLS, Md. (AP) -- Shannon Sharpe walked up to a shelf at the Baltimore Ravens' training complex, selected a handful of video tapes and prepared for an evening in front of the television set. "Time to learn a little bit about the Oakland Raiders," he said. The Ravens knew virtually everything about the Tennessee Titans, their bitter rivals in the AFC Central. Playing the Titans for the third time this season Sunday, Baltimore rolled to a 24-10 victory to advance to the AFC championship game. The Ravens aren't nearly as familiar with Oakland, a team they haven't faced since 1998 and have never played on the road. The Raiders and Baltimore play for the AFC championship this Sunday in Oakland. "It's more of a challenge," Ravens head coach Brian Billick said Monday. "It will take a little longer to scope what it is they're doing. But football is football. You can overanalyze, too." This much he does know: The fans in Oakland are vociferous, relentless and perhaps a little bit dangerous. "I'm not going to walk from my hotel to the stadium, let's put it that way," Billick said. Having played for the Denver Broncos for 10 seasons, tight end Sharpe is probably the Ravens' best authority on the Raiders. The Denver-Oakland rivalry was established long before Tennessee and Baltimore became antagonists. Sharpe learned something about the Raiders on Saturday, when he watched them pin a 27-0 defeat on the Miami Dolphins. "They dominated Miami. There's no question that we've got our work cut out for us," he said. "They've got the No. 1 rush offense and a quarterback [Rich Gannon] who scrambles around and makes plays. They're also very talented on the defensive side of the football." Words of respect about the opposition? There wasn't much of that in the Ravens' locker room in the days leading up to the Tennessee game, but the Raiders represent an entirely different type of opponent. "The thing is, we don't know much about them," Sharpe said. "We knew so much about Tennessee, but it's hard to talk trash about somebody you don't know anything about. With the exception of me and [former Bronco] Harry Swayne, there's not a whole lot of guys who played the Raiders before." The last time Baltimore faced Oakland, Ted Marchibroda was the Ravens' head coach and Jon Gruden was launching a rebuilding operation as Oakland's first-year coach. Gruden has since turned the Raiders into a powerhouse, while Billick has transformed Baltimore into a brash team that stands one win away from the Super Bowl. The Ravens' confidence hasn't wavered, but at least they're being a little more cautious about what they say leading up to Sunday's game. In the wake of Baltimore's win in Nashville, Ravens owner Art Modell suggested that Billick and his players were a bit too bold in their comments about the Titans last week. Modell, who has never had a team in the Super Bowl, sat in on Billick's weekly press conference Monday for the first time. "As you can tell, I've brought my muzzle with me," Billick said with a grin. Actually, the fact that Oakland represents a relatively unknown entity is reason enough for the Ravens to temper their statements. "It will be more low key because we don't know them," said linebacker Jamie Sharper, who had a stack of tapes in his hand. Billick gave the players Monday and Tuesday off, but several lifted weights and grabbed some tapes. Practice for the Raiders will begin in earnest on Wednesday, and the team will travel to Oakland after a light workout Friday. Billick is optimistic that safety Kim Herring, who missed the Tennessee game with a sprained ankle, will be available Sunday. But reserve linebacker Cornell Brown is nursing "a pretty serious hamstring pull," Billick said.
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