National Football League

Countdown: Can Flacco step up in playoffs?

Published Jan. 16, 2010 2:21 a.m. ET

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Baltimore at Indianapolis, 8:15 ET

WHAT TO WATCH FOR: In the regular-season game, a two-point win by the Colts, the Ravens were in winning field-goal range when Ravens QB Joe Flacco was intercepted by Indy LB Gary Brackett at the 14-yard line with 2:42 left. Granted, the Colts were on the road that day, but the Ravens were still able to intercept Peyton Manning twice and were playing without their best pass rusher, Terrell Suggs.

The Ravens definitely want a replay of Sunday’s win against the Patriots, when they forced four turnovers and sacked Tom Brady three times, including one by Suggs. Sure, Baltimore’s defense doesn’t resemble the 2000 model that crushed its way to a Super Bowl title, but Ed Reed and Ray Lewis are still going strong. Manning, though, should attack the weak Baltimore cornerbacks, Chris Carr and Frank Walker, while working out of the shotgun most of the time.

What Baltimore needs to do is run as well as it did in New England and limit Manning’s possessions. Baltimore’s offensive line is very good now that LT Jared Gaither is healthy. Gaither must deal with Dwight Freeney, while rookie RT Michael Oher takes on Robert Mathis. The Colts allowed 126.5 yards rushing per game during the season, but Ray Rice and Willis McGahee seem better now, especially Rice, who opened last Sunday’s game with an 83-yard TD run.

The Ravens are fast enough on defense, but they simply don’t have the cornerbacks to stop Reggie Wayne, Dallas Clark and Pierre Garcon on a regular basis. But if they can get consistent pressure on Manning, anything is possible.

Baltimore has a 6-2 record on the road during the playoffs. The big mystery remains Flacco, who completed just four passes in the win over the Patriots. He is limited by hip and quad injuries, so if the Colts can jump to a big lead, Flacco might not be able to fire back. Also, Baltimore’s receiving corps has been shaky all season with too many drops at critical times. TE Todd Heap, who was forced out of the New England game with a back injury, is expected to start.

CZAR’S SCOOP: This is one of first times in recent memory that both conferences’ No. 1 seeds are playing on Saturday of the divisional playoffs. In the past, the league has preferred to have at least one of its top teams playing in the late game on Sunday afternoon. However, Colts GM Bill Polian, an influential member of the league’s Competition Committee, lobbied hard that the top seeds play on Saturday in order to ensure their opponents are working on a short week, thus giving his team and the Saints an edge, one that they deserve for having the best records. With three dome teams hosting today, it made sense to some that one of them would be playing at home Sunday evening.

Colts WR Pierre Garcon still has dozens of relatives in Haiti, but his mother heard they are doing fine after this week’s earthquake.

One of the more oddball stories of the week came out of Jacksonville, where owner Wayne Weaver said his quarterback, David Garrard, has to work as hard as Manning does. Weaver then related a story about Manning driving three hours to simply help a young receiver who couldn’t attend the team’s OTA days. Weaver got the names wrong, but after Anthony Gonzalez was drafted in the first round in 2007, Manning did go to Ohio State a few times to work and throw to Gonzalez, who couldn’t join the Colts until after graduation.

This is a big game for Ravens RG Marshal Yanda, who suffered a season-ending knee injury against the Colts in October 2008. Yanda is so talented he moved out to tackle when the injuries hit the offensive line.

It will be interesting how the fans react in Indianapolis. Last time, they booed when rookie head coach Jim Caldwell sat his starters in the second half with an unbeaten season on the line. That loss to the Jets propelled New York into the playoffs.

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