“No, I don’t have a limit,” said Lewis, who is slated to platoon with backup Chester Taylor after undergoing surgery on his right ankle last winter. “However many carries it takes to win the football game, that’s it. It doesn’t really matter.”

Lewis rushed for 130 yards on 20 carries in last season’s 20-10 loss to the Colts. Afterward, the former Pro Bowl runner wished he had been involved even more.

Traditionally, defenses stack the line of scrimmage to account for Lewis and aren’t too concerned about quarterback Kyle Boller and a passing game that ranked 31st last season.

“One thing we do have and one thing we’ve always had is the running game, and I think that’s what we always fall back on whenever it’s tight or anything,” Lewis said. “My main thing is to get rolling early just so we can get that man-to-man coverage outside and let our guys kind of go to work.

“I don’t really think defenses really respect us throwing the football, so they’re going to make us throw the football. If that’s the case, key on me and try to stop me. Hopefully, we can get that thing going over the top.”

Lewis acknowledged that his ankle still hurts, but said that won’t break his stride against the Colts.

“That’s the crazy thing, it don’t hurt when I run,” Lewis said. “It just hurts when I stop. Hopefully, I can keep it moving in the game and it’ll be all right. I’m not really concerned about it.”

A week after complaining about the lack of a contract extension and the possibility that the Ravens might designate him as their franchise player, Lewis played down the dispute.

“Now is not the time to really worry about that,” said Lewis, who's in the final year of a six-year, $35.5 million contract. “They can take it up with my agent if they want to talk about that, but I have nothing else to say about that. I think they’ll do the best thing for us and the best thing for the team. I think they’ll get it done in due time."

COLTS REDUX: Backup linebacker Jim Nelson has a unique perspective on how the Colts left Baltimore decades ago on a snowy night. The former Colt is a Maryland native who attended high school in Waldorf.

“The way they left was shady,” Nelson said. “People are bitter. You see those Mayflower trucks moving out in the middle of the night and people aren’t too happy.”

FULL OF ADVICE: Nelson has been giving Ray Lewis advice all week about how to defend quarterback Peyton Manning.

“We couldn’t stop him in practice, we’re going to have our hands full,” Nelson said. “He’s a smart guy, kind of like a football nerd."

TRAINING ROOM: The Colts added defensive end Dwight Freeney (toe) to their injury report as probable.

Former Ravens receiver Brandon Stokley (shoulder) is probable is and expected to play as much as usual.

The Ravens made no changes to their injury report, listing tackle Adam Terry (ankle) and receiver Devard Darling (quadriceps) as questionable.

QUICK HIT: The Ravens plan to match every dollar collected from fans Sunday to benefit victims of Hurricane Katrina. Initially, the Ravens had planned to match the first $25,000 in donations. The Ravens have already raised $660,000.

In addition to being a long time contributor to RavensInsider, Aaron Wilson writes for the Carroll County Times in Westminster Maryland.

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