BE CAREFUL WHAT YOU WISH FOR - That could be the theme of the opener of our Week 15 National Football League doubleheader on Sports USA. The Baltimore Ravens host the Chicago Bears at M&T Bank Stadium at 1 O'Clock EST, 10 AM PST, with playoff hopes newly rekindled. At 7-6, the Ravens are right there in the AFC wildcard playoff mix with the Jacksonville Jaguars, New York Jets, and Miami Dolphins. After a tough Monday night loss in Green Bay, the Detroit Lions were the perfect tonic last Sunday. The Ravens rushed for 308 yards, showcasing the spectacular emergence of second-year halfback Ray Rice as the NFL's next superstar runner. Rice needed only 13 carries to amass 166 yards. Willis McGahee accepted the spotlight from Rice with a pair of fourth quarter touchdown runs. In between, workhorse fullback Le'Ron McClain added a scoring plow. Granted, it was against the lowly Lions. The rule of thumb this season is to divide stats compiled against Detroit by at least three. Even so, it was a big confidence boost going into the final three games of the season against Chicago, and on the road at Pittsburgh and Oakland. This Baltimore offense, with Rice, deep ball thrower par excellence Joe Flacco and appallingly underrated wide receiver Derrick Mason, is the answer to decade-long prayers by Baltimore fans. If only they had this firepower all those years when future Hall of Famer Ray Lewis had to find ways to win on defense, Maryland muses. But look closer, and you'll see that along with this emergence on offense has been a diminution on defense. The proud purple were gashed twice for 100-yard games by Cedric Benson of the Bengals, something that hadn't happened in 12 years. While the focus was on Michael Clayton's dropped fourth down pass at the New England 9 yard line in the final minute on Oct. 4, the fact is that the Baltimore defense gave up two long scoring drives to Patriots quarterback Tom Brady earlier in the game. These Ravens aren't nearly as intimidating on defense as they once were even with the greatest linebacker of his time in Lewis and the gold standard of playmaking safeties in Ed Reed. There's no question that a good part of the Ravens defensive swagger now dresses in green and white, with the New York Jets of former Baltimore defensive coordinator Rex Ryan. Hall of Famers have a way of imposing their will at precisely the most propitious moment though, as Reed did with six December interceptions to propel Baltimore into the playoffs and onto the threshold of Super Bowl XLIII. This is a trifecta Baltimore is eminently equipped to achieve. Three years ago this week, the Chicago Bears were headed to their first NFC Championship Game since 1988 with a fan base in open revolt against quarterback Rex Grossman. Imagine how good we would be, they wondered aloud, with a quarterback? Again. Be careful what you wish for. Jay Cutler arrived in Chicago as the most ballyhooed Bears passer since Sid Luckman. Yet here's Chicago, staggering to the finish line at 5-7 amid mounting indications head coach Lovie Smith will not be back in 2010. There are people in this business with smooch character and integrity that you find yourself subconsciously rooting for them. Lovell Smith is one of those people. In Super Bowl XLI, the first to match African-American head coaches, Smith was a portrait of dignity, and perspective. The last thing he wanted to talk about was football as sociology. The affection his players felt for this coach who rarely raised his voice to them was obvious. There's no question now that the most anticipated Monsters of the Midway season in years began unraveling with the opening night injury to Brian Urlacher. The Bears spoke bravely about soldiering on. But you don't replace future hall of famers so easily.

CHANGING THEIR STRIPES - Our doubleheader game Sunday takes us to America's Finest City, where the Cincinnati Bengals and San Diego Chargers collide in a possible playoff preview. The second AFC playoff bye is up for grabs in this one. The shadow cast by the Indianapolis Colts is immense, but under the rules, the second-best winning record also gets wildcard weekend off on Jan. 8-9. The Bengals, Chargers, and Patriots each know that they could be in the position of having to win only home game to earn the right to play for a trip to Super Bowl XLIV. Cincinnati is in the position when it's been the most lethal this season, having to bounce back. The 30 points the Minnesota Vikings hung on them in the Brett-trodome last Sunday were a dubious season high. The 10 points they scored were a season-low. Whenever the Bengals have endured adversity this season, they have come roaring off the mat with a vengeance. It's all part of a new "Fight Back" mantra authored by the Bengals' leader, Palmer. Full disclosure: I've known Carson Palmer for 11 years, having covered his entire career at the University of Southern California. He helped build the foundation upon which Pete Carroll's USC dynasty now stands. When he endured a season-ending shoulder injury and the flux of three head coaches and four offensive coordinators in five years, Palmer never made excuses. Nor did his point fingers. He had the lumps to show for receivers and lineman apparently too busy reading their Cal-Hi sports press clippings to run the right routes and block the right pass rushers. But he never blamed anyone, which is why he was beloved in Heritage Hall. His deep faith got him through the tough times, something we often could be found discussing after his visits to Carroll's weekly media luncheons in Heritage Hall. That faith got him through a devastating knee injury in 2005. It helped him persevere through seasons when the Bengals had three times as many arrests as victories. When he called out his teammates on their immaturity last season, it was less to challenge Coach Marvin Lewis' authority as it was to bolster the boss. When I saw Carson last summer in Los Angeles, he told me and anyone who would listen to bet the Bengals to win the AFC North. Notwithstanding the presence of AFC championship game participants Baltimore and Pittsburgh. Carson likened the maturation of the 2009 Bengals to the stunning transformation of the 2002 USC Trojans from a 6-6 team to an 11-2 Orange Bowl champion led by the Heisman Trophy winner just one year later. "This year, when things go wrong, we're going to close ranks and fight back," explained the Cincinnati quarterback. In the past, a team enamored only of its breathtaking talent folded easily when things went wrong. Now that the Bengals respect and appreciate their talent, rather than take it for granted, they have fought back all year. They didn't sulk when perfect triple-coverage of Brandon Marshall resulted in a tipped-pass touchdown of 86 yards to Brandon Stokley for a Denver Broncos victory on opening day. Their response was to win the next four games with comeback touchdown drives in the fourth quarter. A home loss to Houston was answered with a three-game winning streak featuring impressive punch-outs of Baltimore and Pittsburgh. When Cincinnati suffered an old-Bengals flashback in a dreadful loss to Oakland, wins over Cleveland and Detroit ensued. Cincinnati already has its second winning season in 19 years. The Bengals aren't nearly as satisfied as they were in 2005, when players from winning programs all over college football transplanted that winning mindset to Cincinnati.

LIGHTING STRIKES THRICE? - When they absorbed a Monday night pounding by the Denver Broncos Oct. 19, the San Diego Chargers were 2-3. LaDainian Tomlinson was washed up, the Chargers window of Super Bowl opportunity was slammed shut, and coach Norv Turner's army of critics was mobilizing. For those keeping score, that was eight wins ago. For the third straight year under the embattled Turner, the Men of the Lightning Bolt are playing their best football in December. Isn't that the job description of an NFL head coach? Turner has dealt with the loss of run-stuffing nose tackle Jamaal Williams by inserting rookie Ogemdi Nwagbuo, one of general manager A.J. Smith's uncanny finds out of Michigan State. On the key goal line stand at Dallas last Sunday, inside linebackers Brandon Siler and Stephen Cooper took turns stonewalling Marion Barber, the Cowboys' typically bruising goal line runner. Turner has masterfully finessed the sensitive issue of de-emphasizing Tomlinson's role with an offense he carried on his back and in his soul for the better part of the decade. The result: L-T has regained his burst after two seasons of knee, toe and ankle injuries. As the Chargers' new designated hitter, he is restored as a red zone impact player. The Chargers are now 16-0 in December since 2005, and Tomlinson looked like the NFL's December rushing leader he is while helping run out the clock on the final series at Cowboys Stadium Sunday. It is a tribute to how Tomlinson has touched San Diego's heart since 2001 that the whole community has felt sympathetic pain for The Franchise these past three seasons since his 31-touchdown MVP tour de force in 2006. L-T has told friends he has two things remaining on his to-do list before they cast his bronze likeness in Canton, Ohio: fatherhood, and a Super Bowl ring. His lovely bride, LaTorsha, is expecting the couple's first child. The Chargers became Philip Rivers' team the day the quarterback gallantly hopped about Gillette Stadium in Foxborough in the 2007 AFC championship game he played on one leg, putting off knee surgery. Vincent Jackson, another of Smith's finds, has exploded an imposing go-to receiver. Fellow 6-foot-5 target Malcolm Floyd has been coming on in the second half for this NBA frontcourt of a San Diego receiving corps, too. As has Legedu Nanee, the 6-foot-2, 226-pounder who's made a home on third down. With Jackson enjoying a 120-yard day at the Palace in Dallas, the Cowboys had to play Chargers tight end Antonio Gates straight up, which was a total mismatch. It's interesting to note that Turner is 29-16 in his three seasons as head coach in San Diego. His next playoff win will make him the winningest postseason coach in Chargers history, breaking a tie with Bobby Ross, the only man ever to lead the San Diego Chargers to the Super Bowl. That record includes a pair of playoff victories over the Indianapolis Colts, one at Lucas Oil Stadium in 2007 and the other in San Diego last January. Hall of Famer John Robinson, our Sports USA Radio Network analyst, is understandably proud of his fellow Oregon Duck, whom he hired for his coaching staff both at USC and with the then-Los Angeles Rams. If the Chargers keep rolling, Coach could have some company on that Turner bandwagon.

STOCKING STUFFERS - With the BCS national championship game headed to the Rose Bowl, that college football fan on your list would love a copy of "The Road to the Rose Bowl," Todd Erickson's definitive history of Old GrandDaddy. The book features many rare photos of Rose Bowl game action, and chronicles the unique history of "The Beef Bowl," the involvement of Lawry's The Prime Rib in Beverly Hills. Each Rose Bowl team enjoys a sumptuous feast at the fabled restaurant, and receives its Rose Bowl watches there. The Beef Bowl, which is also a part of Cotton Bowl tradition in Dallas, marks a Rose Bowl first in 2010. With Ohio State and Oregon in town for the O's Bowl, Lawry's will take the Beef Bowl on the road to suburban Orange County, where Texas and Alabama will be decamped for the BCS National Championship Game. As Erickson's book notes, this will be the Longhorns' third trip to Pasadena in six years (2004-05-10) after never having set hooves on the arroyo before that. Texas' epic 41-38 national championship game de-throning of USC in 2006 remains the highest-rated college football TV broadcast of the last 23 years. Alabama has some cherished Rose Bowl history, too. The Crimson Tide will be making their seventh Rose Bowl appearance on Jan. 7. They're 4-1-1 in previous Pasadena passages, including a 34-14 pounding of USC in the 1946 Rose Bowl that was the last before the institution of the Pac 10-Big 10 arrangement. Harry Gilmer led the assault on Troy in the 1946 game that ended an eight-game Rose Bowl winning streak for USC. The 34 points allowed were more than USC had given up in its eight previous Rose Bowls. Only in 1926 in a 7-7 tie with Stanford and 1938, when Cal crested the Crimson Tide 13-0, did Alabama not come up roses in the arroyo. Southern California has a special place in Alabama football history for another reason. By 1969, legendary Alabama coach Paul "Bear" Bryant was anxious to end the sinful exclusion of African-Americans from Southeastern Conference football. The Bear wanted to make the point to the Alabama football faithful. So he called John McKay at USC to schedule a home-and-home series with the Trojans. Bryant insisted that the 1970 matchup be at Legion Field in Birmingham _ not for homefield advantage, but for Alabama fans to see USC's all-black backfield of quarterback Jimmy Jones, running back Clarence Davis and fullback Sam Cunningham. "Coach Bryant wanted Coach McKay to make the argument on the field that Alabama fans wouldn't listen to from (Bryant)," recalled Wilbur Jackson, who was in Legion Field that night and would become Alabama's first African-American recruit. USC 42, Alabama 17. Argument made. Three years later, when Alabama played Notre Dame for the national championship in the Sugar Bowl, Jackson was a Crimson Tide co-captain. Sylvester Croom was a defensive captain who would go on to become the first black head coach in SEC history at Mississippi State. I spoke with Jackson about the historic 1970 game at Legion Field in 2000, when Alabama made its first visit to southern California since the 1971 game at the Low Angeles Memorial Coliseum. Jackson had just returned from getting his daughter settled in for her freshman year in Tuscaloosa. He marveled to me how different the Alabama campus looked from the one where Gov. George Wallace had stood in the doorway to bar black students from entering in 1962. Even 30 years later, Jackson expressed gratitude, admiration and more than a little awe for Bear Bryant's impact in his life. Would The Bear ever be proud of the scene on Jan. 2.

2009 LOTT TROPHY WINNER - Congratulations to Jerry Hughes, the TCU defensive end who won the Lott Trophy as College Football's defensive IMPACT Player of the Year at the Pacific Club in Newport Beach, Calif. Sunday night. Hughes edged out Butkus Award winner Rolando McClain of Alabama, Thorpe Award winner Eric Berry of Tennessee and Bednarik, Nagurski, Lombardi and Outland Trophy winner Ndamukong Suh of Nebraska. The Pacific Club's IMPACT Foundation recognizes players who best exemplify Hall of Famer Ronnie Lott's characteristics of Integrity, Maturity, Performance, Academics, Community and Tenacity. Just as important as Hughes' 29 sacks the past two seasons was his status as the youngest person ever to win the Fort Worth Bank of America Hometown Heroes Award. Hughes was credited with helping rescue an at-risk youth befriended in a class he was taking for course credit, then stayed in touch with after the semester ended. We'll discuss the sixth Lott Trophy winner with Ronnie Lott at halftime of our MAACO Las Vegas Bowl broadcast Tuesday night, Dec. 22.