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MIAMI (Ticker) --
Ray Lewis
is coming back to Miami. The Dolphins could use his nasty streak.
Lewis and the
Baltimore Ravens
visit the Dolphins on Sunday for the fourth straight season. It's always a special trip for Lewis, who was a star linebacker at the University of Miami. Ravens safety
Ed Reed
also played for the Hurricanes.
Last November, Lewis played with a harness on his injured left shoulder and had 18 tackles, but the Dolphins posted a 26-7 win over the Ravens. In 2001, Lewis led a defense that held Miami to 151 total yards in a 20-3 win for the Ravens in the wild card round.
Miami's defense has yielded an AFC-low 141 points, but the Dolphins were scorched by
Steve McNair
in a 31-7 loss to the
Tennessee Titans
last week.
Reigning NFL rushing champion
Ricky Williams
was held to 37 yards on 13 carries. Subtract his one good run for 15 yards, and he had just 22 on his other dozen carries. Last November, Williams ran for 102 yards and two touchdowns in the win over Baltimore.
Quarterback
Jay Fiedler
missed that game with a broken thumb. He has been sidelined for Miami's last three games with a sprained knee ligament and will not start on Sunday.
Backup
Brian Griese
threw three touchdowns in a win over San Diego in his first start, but has now presided over back-to-back losses to Indianapolis and Tennessee. He was intercepted three times and threw for just 131 yards in the loss to the Titans.
Anthony Wright
will start at quarterback for Baltimore after rookie
Kyle Boller
suffered a torn left quadriceps in last week's 33-22 loss to the St. Louis Rams.
Wright, the third-string quarterback in Baltimore's first nine games, was chosen over
Chris Redman
and will make his first start since 2001 when he was with the
Dallas Cowboys
.
But Ravens coach Brian Billick will rely on the running of
Jamal Lewis
, the NFL's leading rusher with 1,156 yards, and a hard-hitting defense led by
Ray Lewis
and fellow linebackers
Peter Boulware
and
Terrell Suggs
.
Jamal Lewis
rushed for 111 yards on 27 carries against the Rams, but was held to 47 yards on 17 carries in last November's loss here.
Despite giving up 33 points to the Rams last week, the offense was more to blame than the defense, committing seven turnovers. Baltimore's defense held St. Louis to just seven first downs and 121 total yards.
Miami leads the series, 3-1.
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