When the Ravens take the field Thursday night against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the preseason opener, Joe Flacco, Ray Rice, Terrell Suggs and the rest of the starters are expected to be out there.
But exactly how much they play is up in the air.
* *"We're not going to play the starters the whole game," Head Coach John Harbaugh said Tuesday. "How much we play them remains to be seen. We've got a plan."
Unless the players are dealing with injuries, the Ravens want to get their starters on the field to get them adjusted to live game action.
"Right now, we're planning on playing guys," Harbaugh said. "We need to play, but we'll see."
In past years, most of the starters have played the first few series, depending on the specific players and the flow of the game. Some veterans* *may only play a series, but Flacco could see more time as he tries to build his chemistry with the young receiving corps.
In last year's preseason opener against Atlanta, Flacco played four series and finished the game completing nine of 12 passes for 88 yards and a touchdown.
"It's really an opportunity to polish up and see if all the practice you've been doing has paid off in terms of the game," Flacco said.
One of the biggest differences for the quarterbacks in the live game is that they can actually get hit. During practice, the quarterbacks wear red no-contact jerseys and are off-limits to defenders.
That changes in the preseason.
"You go out there, you get used to being back out there and being in and getting hit," Flacco said. "I haven't been hit since Feb. 3, so my neck will be sore for a little bit after I get hit for the first time. It always gets you going when you get hit for that first time. It reminds you that you play football."
The Ravens will debut a number of new pieces to the roster since they last took the field in the Super Bowl six months ago. There is a re-built defensive front, a young receiving corps, a new secondary and two new starters at inside linebacker.
"It will be cool to just get out there and get the feel for your surroundings again and remember what it's like a little bit," Flacco said. "The first preseason game, especially, is really just to get out there, hopefully have a couple good series and be very polished and prove to yourself that the practice is paying off."
