NOTEBOOK: TIGHT ENDS RETURN TO PRACTICE; HOW DID 'FIVE GUYS' DO?

By Joe Platania

OWINGS MILLS -- It's that time of year when NFL beat writers for individual teams, as well as the national correspondents, make their picks as to which teams will make the playoffs and/or play in the Super Bowl.

Each season, we also take our shot at it, but it's a pretty difficult task when you consider that, astoundingly, at least five new teams have claimed some of the 12 playoff spots each year for the past decade and a half.

This year has an extra dynamic, the fact that a full offseason -- without any labor strife -- took place, allowing teams to conduct free-agent business and have minicamps, organized team activities and training camps without worrying about when they would actually start or where they would take place.

Last year, the random nature of the league coupled with the lockout led to a 9-7 team, with a bottom-third defense, winning the Super Bowl.

Will it turn out that way again? Here's what we think:

AFC NORTH

1. Cincinnati (11-5) -- A deep defense and explosive offense give the Bengals the edge.
2. Baltimore (10-6) -- Ultimately, the loss of linebacker Terrell Suggs and his pass rush will make the difference.
3. Pittsburgh (9-7) -- The Steelers are younger on the offensive line, but still a bit gray on defense.
4. Cleveland (7-9) -- The Browns wanted playmakers, and they'll cause a bit of trouble

AFC EAST

1. New England (14-2) -- The league's easiest schedule suits one of the AFC's best teams.
2. Buffalo (10-6) -- The Bills know how to beat Patriots, and they should also sweep the Jets.
3. NY Jets (7-9) -- Rex Ryan won't go gently into the night, but he'll probably go.
4. Miami (4-12) -- The Dolphins had to draft Ryan Tannehill, but what do they have there?

AFC SOUTH

1. Houston (11-5) -- This team now knows how to win, and will do it often.
2. Tennessee (8-8) -- A once-elite franchise is now strictly middle-of-the-road.
3. Indianapolis (6-10) -- It's better to be "Luck"-y than good; rookie quarterback Andrew Luck will help.
4. Jacksonville (3-13) -- Quarterback Blaine Gabbert's passes to rookie wide receiver Justin Blackmon might be the Jaguars' only highlights.

AFC WEST

1. Kansas City (9-7) -- The Chiefs are a complete team, but they win by attrition.
2. San Diego (8-8) -- Can Chargers fans really put up with constant mediocrity?
3. Denver (8-8) -- Quarterback Peyton Manning is a legend, but it's also a team game.
4. Oakland (6-10) -- Penalty trouble and getting used to a new coach will take this team down.

AFC seeds: 1. New England 2. Houston 3. Cincinnati 4. Kansas City 5. Baltimore 6. Buffalo

Wild Card Weekend: Baltimore beating Kansas City; Buffalo beating Cincinnati

Divisional Round: Houston beating Baltimore; New England beating Buffalo

AFC Championship: Houston beating New England

NFC NORTH

1. Green Bay (12-4) -- The Packers are a consistent, complete, dangerous team every single season.
2. Detroit (10-6) -- The secondary could be good for a win against the Packers this year.
3. Chicago (9-7) -- Sure, Brandon Marshall will catch passes, but he can't play D.
4. Minnesota (6-10) -- The Vikings are better than last year, but still have a hill to climb.

NFC EAST

1. Philadelphia (11-5) -- Did the Eagles learn their lessons during the ego-deflating 2011 season?
2. Dallas (10-6) -- The Cowboys' defense needs to get better, and it looks as if it has.
3. NY Giants (8-8) -- The Giants will go from ordinary-looking champs to a middle-of-the-road team.
4. Washington (7-9) -- The Redskins' good, young defense needs help staying off the field.

NFC SOUTH

1. Atlanta (11-5) -- A good-but-not-great team wins thanks to New Orleans' decline.
2. Carolina (10-6) -- Last year, quarterback Cam Newton broke out. This year, he breaks through.
3. New Orleans (7-9) -- Talent alone will get the Saints this many wins, but not much more.
4. Tampa Bay (5-11) -- Is Josh Freeman ready to be a more consistent quarterback?

NFC WEST

1. San Francisco (13-3) -- Coach Jim Harbaugh and a tough D just won't let this team lose.
2. Seattle (9-7) -- A better home-field advantage gives 'Hawks second-place edge.
3. Arizona (8-8) -- The Cardinals' two games with Seattle will decide second place.
4. St. Louis (4-12) -- Sam Bradford could be an elite quarterback soon, but his team is dreadful.

NFC seeds: 1. San Francisco 2. Green Bay 3. Philadelphia 4. Atlanta 5. Carolina 6. Dallas

Wild Card Weekend: Philadelphia beating Dallas; Carolina beating Atlanta

Divisional Round: San Francisco beating Carolina; Green Bay beating Philadelphia

NFC Championship: San Francisco beating Green Bay

SUPER BOWL XLVII, FEB. 3, MERCEDES-BENZ SUPERDOME, NEW ORLEANS:
Houston beating San Francisco

***

JOEY P'S TRIVIA TIME: Today's question:

The Jacksonville Jaguars ran for more than 100 yards against the Ravens Aug. 23, which duplicated their effort against Baltimore during their 12-7 "Monday Night Football" upset last year.

All told, the Jags ran for 132 yards during that win, the second-most rushing yards the Ravens allowed in 2011. Which team ran for more?

The answer will be revealed at the bottom of this entry.

***

DICKSON, PITTA RETURN: Because the training-camp phase of the preseason is finished, media access to practice will be limited to the first half-hour of each session.

But from now until season's end, we can still bring you news about which players at least made it out to the field for practice and which did not.

Saturday's session, the first since Thursday's 48-17 win against Jacksonville, was conducted outdoors in the cloudiest, coolest conditions of the entire month: overcast with a temperature forecasted to be no higher than 78 degrees. A light rain was falling as practice began.

Perhaps the biggest news from the practice field was that tight ends Ed Dickson and Dennis Pitta returned to the field, albeit with limited participation. They did some side work with tight ends coach Wade Harman, catching a few balls and doing some jogging before heading toward the special-teams drills.

Dickson, in sweatpants instead of the day's shorts-and-shells code, suffered a shoulder sprain while hauling in a touchdown catch during the team's preseason opener at Atlanta on Aug. 9. Pitta, who wore a red mesh no-contact jersey, suffered a broken hand July 30 during the early training-camp phase.

Head coach John Harbaugh praised the pair for staying in shape; even though the pair did not issue a full declaration, both seem to be on track to return for Week One on Sept. 10 against Cincinnati.

"I'm not catching passes full speed," Pitta said. "Things are going good each day, and I'm getting better day by day."

Dickson agreed.

"It's been tough not to be out there," he said. "I've been very limited, and I don't want to overextend anything. But I wanted to get out and run with the team."

Defensive end Pernell McPhee had missed some recent practices because of a death in his family, but played against the Jaguars and blocked a field goal. He returned to the practice field, as did kicker Billy Cundiff, linebacker Sergio Kindle (in red mesh) and quarterback Chester Stewart, who did not play against Jacksonville.

Predictably missing from the session was safety Emanuel Cook, whose broken leg will officially make him the second player to be put on season-ending injured reserve, joining linebacker Michael McAdoo (Achilles). Defensive tackle Ryan McBean (ankle) is also expected to miss the season.

Also out were safety Sean Considine (concussion); linebackers Ricky Brown (unknown), Stevie Baggs (unknown), Josh Bynes (cracked vertebrae) and Darryl Blackstock (groin); guards Marshal Yanda (leg) and Jah Reid (calf); and wideout Tommy Streeter (unknown).

Wideout David Reed (ACL surgery) remains on the Physically Unable To Perform list, the last of four players placed on that sheet when training camp began.

Linebacker Terrell Suggs (Achilles tendon surgery) is still on the Reserve/Non-Football Injury sheet, expected to miss at least half the season after incurring his injury in late April.

***

HOW DID THEY DO?: On Tuesday, we selected "Five Players To Watch" for which Thursday's game would be crucial as far as their chances for making the team are concerned.

Let's look back and see how they did against the Jaguars:

RB DAMIEN BERRY: Last year's practice-squad player, embroiled in a four-way battle to be Ray Rice's backup, had a good news-bad news night. The good news is he led all Ravens rushers with 40 yards on seven carries, but the bad news is he didn't enter the game until late, a signal that his Ravens days may be numbered.

LB COURTNEY UPSHAW: This year's top draft pick seemed a lot more comfortable and a lot less tentative on the field. He recorded two tackles, a tackle for loss, a quarterback hit and his first NFL sack. But the Ravens' run defense suffered, allowing 4.4 yards per carry, and the whole defense must share the blame for that.

QB TYROD TAYLOR: Like Upshaw, Taylor had a much better game against Jacksonville than he did against Detroit, completing seven of nine passes for 139 yards, two touchdowns and an interception. There were a few rumblings that perhaps Curtis Painter had passed him as Joe Flacco's backup, but the nimble Taylor put that to rest.

CB CARY WILLIAMS: The question about who is going to start opposite Lardarius Webb is probably moot, because Williams, Webb and Jimmy Smith are going to be on the field simultaneously quite often. But Williams did allow Justin Blackmon too much room in the middle of the field on a long gainer that led to the Jags' first score. He had one tackle.

K JUSTIN TUCKER/BILLY CUNDIFF: Cundiff knew 24 hours before the game that he would not be kicking, but that didn't stop him from being mad about it. He'll likely kick for one of the league's teams this year, but it might not be Baltimore. Tucker's 53-yard field goal would have been good from 65.

***

BRINGING IT ALL BACK: Hope you're not reading this next item while eating your favorite meal, but ...

In the movie "Any Given Sunday," quarterback Willie Beamen (played by Jamie Foxx) couldn't quite get into the game until he had, shall we say, lost his lunch. From then on, he was ready to play with reckless abandon.

Offensive linemen have one of the hardest jobs in football, as they are entrusted with holding back ferociously blitzing linemen and linebackers while trying to give their passers time and their runners space in which to work.

The wear and tear showed on Thursday; reportedly, Ravens backup tackle Ramon Harewood was spotted pulling a Beamen-esque maneuever on his way back to the bench after a tough series.

Also, center Matt Birk recently recalled a time when a particularly strenuous workout had him involuntarily retrieving a previous meal.

"The first day after the last game of my rookie year, I went over to our long snapper's house for a workout," Birk told the Ravens' Web site. "[Minnesota long snapper] Mike Morris was legendary for his training and, at 51 today, he's still in phenomenal shape. We trained legs and worked so hard that it made me throw up in his kids' bathroom, which was in the basement.

"I threw up all over, including on these rugs that were shaped like frogs. I tried to clean everything up, but couldn't get the rugs very clean. I rolled them up, took them home and cleaned them there."

***

QUOTE OF THE DAY: The NFL's regular-season schedule is dictated by a formula that rotates opponents on a regular basis. But during the preseason, teams can request their four yearly foes based on coaches' relationships with each other, offensive and defensive philosophies, geography and other factors.

That's why, in the wake of Jacksonville's lopsided loss to the Ravens, the revelation that Jaguars head coach Mike Mularkey actually wanted Baltimore on his August schedule surprised a few observers.

“We looked for a 3-4 [defense]," Mularkey said. "[We wanted to play] a team that played an odd front, instead of having four, you know, 4-3 teams [on the schedule]. We wanted a team that gave a little more different look, just to get that work on it.

“They’re a good front, pretty good, and they've been doing it for a long time.”

***

JOEY P'S TRIVIA TIME ANSWER: Here's the question we asked you earlier in this entry:

The Jacksonville Jaguars ran for more than 100 yards against the Ravens Aug. 23, which duplicated their effort against Baltimore during their 12-7 "Monday Night Football" upset last year.

All told, the Jags ran for 132 yards during that win, the second-most rushing yards the Ravens allowed in 2011. Which team ran for more?

ANSWER:

In perhaps their worst overall performance of the year, the Ravens allowed 145 rushes on 37 carries, as well as three rushing touchdowns, during their nationally televised, 34-14 loss to the San Diego Chargers during Week 14.

The Ravens had clinched their fourth straight playoff berth earlier during the day. But not even their postseason credentials could stop San Diego from scoring during their first five possessions (four touchdowns, one field goal).

Ryan Mathews led the rushing attack with 90 yards on 26 carries, and scoring runs of 1 and 3 yards. Mike Tolbert contributed a 2-yard run -- the game's first score -- and had 40 yards on eight carries.

Surprisingly, all that rushing and ball control netted the Chargers a time-of-possession figure of 34:12, only the fourth-most time anyone controlled the ball against the Ravens all year long.

The most possession any team had against the Ravens was 36:15, by -- you guessed it -- Jacksonville, a team that posted a season-high 42 rushing attempts against Baltimore.

Posted Aug. 25, 2012