The numbers do not jump out at you when looking at the Carolina Panthers? profile.
Though they are 3-2 entering Sunday?s game against the Ravens at M&T Bank Stadium, the Panthers have the No. 23-ranked offense and the 18th-best defense in the NFL.
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Still, the Ravens are plenty concerned with the ability of a team many in the preseason considered the favorite to win the NFC.
“I know they are having some struggles here and there, but in any game, they can explode,” Ravens linebacker Ray Lewis said Thursday. “We are very optimistic going into this game, and we want them to play our type of football.”
The Ravens (4-1) have dictated that ground-control style of play for the first five weeks of the season. They even found themselves in that type of game in Monday?s 13-3 loss to Denver, but they lost control in the game?s last two minutes when the Broncos scored the game-clinching touchdown.
Baltimore?s defense will get a stiff challenge from a relatively healthy Carolina offense. Crafty quarterback Jake Delhomme (99 of 166, 978 yards, four TDs) will throw to receivers Keyshawn Johnson (373 yards) and Steve Smith (261 yards) and hand off to DeShaun Foster (88 carries, 373 yards). The Panthers, though, will be without promising rookie running back DeAngelo Williams.
Ravens defensive end Trevor Pryce said Delhomme presents a series of challenges.
“Jake Delhomme reminds me of Jake Plummer actually,” Pryce said. “[Delhomme is] a gunslinger guy ? do whatever it takes to win. He?s a lot more mobile than people give him credit for, and he?s a really fiery, competitive guy. It?s a great challenge. I just like the way he plays, quite honestly.”
The Panthers also feature one of the better offensive lines on the Ravens? schedule, according to Pryce.
On the Panthers? Web site this week, Pro Bowl guard Mike Wahle said of the Ravens, “They have great players across the board, and then on top of that, their schemes are difficult to pick up. They run a lot of stunts at you. They blitz from everywhere. You really have to do your homework.”
Offensively, the Ravens are ranked 29th in the NFL, and their job will not get any easier this week. The offensive line will get one of its toughest challenges to date. Carolina defensive end Julius Peppers is one of the top pass rushers in the NFL. The Panthers also signed former Ravens tackle Maake Kemoeatu in the offseason.
“He is stout, he is hard to move out of there, and he has been a good addition for us,” Panthers coach John Fox said.
The Ravens offensive line, maligned by some, is ready for a challenge.
“With a team like that, they have the size, but they also have the speed,” Ravens center Mike Flynn said. “When it comes to third down, they have four guys who can really bring it. This is probably the best defensive line we?ll play all year.”
