Said Baltimore safety Ed Reed: "They're not the Super Bowl champs for nothing. They are a team. A team."

01:00 AM EST on Monday, November 29, 2004

BY KEVIN McNAMARA
Journal Sports Writer

FOXBORO -- In a perfect world, the Baltimore Ravens were going to make a statement yesterday at Gillette Stadium.

The Ravens, owners of a three-game winning streak and victories in five of their last six games, were going to show the rest of the NFL that the New England Patriots weren't invincible. Ray Lewis, Ed Reed, Terrell Suggs and the rest of a ballyhooed defense were going to smash their way through and get to quarterback Tom Brady and corral running back Corey Dillon.

Yeah, right.

Not much proved perfect in the Ravens' world yesterday. While the defense did limit the Patriots to only one offensive touchdown, the Pats' juggernaut rolled on to its 25th win in 26 tries with a 24-3 victory.

Brady didn't light up the sky but still moved the ball well enough to push Adam Vinatieri into field goal range three times. The Patriot defense was its usual indomitable self, too. When a Tedy Bruschi sack led to a fumble recovery for a fourth-quarter touchdown by Jarvis Green, the Ravens' hopes were cooked.

"My hat goes off to those guys. That's one of those classic battles," said Baltimore linebacker Ray Lewis. "They played our type of football. . . . One turnover here or there makes the game lopsided."

The Ravens, like so many other NFL teams over the last three seasons, fell victim to a recipe that's almost become predictably boring. The Patriots fulfill virtually every old coaching axiom: Don't beat yourself. Play smart. Don't give up the big play. Take advantage of the opponent's mistakes.

It may be boring at times, but it's also devastating.

"They are a very disciplined team and you have to play disciplined to beat them," said safety Ed Reed. "They're not the Super Bowl champs for nothing. They are a team. A team. Their players do their job to a 'T' across the board."

The Ravens took advantage of a Patriot clock-management miscue late in the first half and went into the locker room tied, 3-3. But when Vinatieri booted two third-quarter field goals, the Pats had the cushion they normally use to put a game on ice. Brady and the offense did just that late in the third quarter with a key pass play to Deion Branch, setting up a Dillon one-yard run on the first play of the fourth quarter.

"They did what they always do. They're fundamentally sound," said Ravens' coach Brian Billick. "Once they got control of the game, that's an awful hard team to beat. That's their MO. They're very good at it."

Yet even while the Ravens handed out compliments, they have reason to come away convinced they can play with the Patriots if the two teams meet again in the playoffs. With just five weeks left in the season, the NFL's AFC hierarchy is fairly clear. The Pats, Steelers and Colts sit atop the heap with the race for all-important home field advantage the focus of the final weeks. But teams like the Ravens and the Jets and maybe the Broncos must be considered dangerous.

Put a 2,000-yard running back like a healthy Jamal Lewis in yesterday's game and the Ravens become a very different team. Confidence certainly isn't an issue. From Billick to several players, the Ravens openly welcomed a return trip to Gillette come playoff time.

"We've got five weeks to get better and improve to the point where we can come in here and play with a championship-caliber team," said Billick. "We weren't a good enough team today. Today. We have an opportunity get better and see if we can come back in here at some point. If things work out well enough in the playoffs, we'll see if we are better."

Lewis was asked if his team learned anything about itself yesterday.

"I'm so excited about the opportunity to see a team like this, or them, again in the playoffs," he said. "They way we came out and played in the first half, and really played the whole game, I'm proud of us. I can't hold my head down."