SUPPORT » The challenge of facing one of the best quarter

BALTIMORE (AP) —backs in NFL history and the league’s highest-scoring offense is precisely why 36-year-old Terrell Suggs still gets a kick out of playing football.Suggs and the Baltimore Ravens‘ top-ranked defense take on Drew Brees and the New Orleans Saints on Sunday in an intriguing matchup of first-place teams.“They’re the kind of explosive offense that gives you nightmares Youth Jaleel Scott Jersey ,” Suggs said. “We get to play football against one of the premier quarterbacks. It’s going to be a good, fun game.”Suggs had one of Baltimore’s 11 sacks last week in a 21-0 rout of Tennessee. The Ravens (4-2) are allowing an NFL-low 12.8 points and 270.8 yards per game and have given up only 12 second-half points.“There’s really no weakness,” Brees said. “They do so many things well.”The Saints (4-1) come off a bye with a four-game winning streak. New Orleans is averaging an NFL-best 36 points per game behind Brees, the league’s career leader in yards passing with 72,103 yards .“It’s definitely going to be a task there, but we’re up for it,” said Suggs, a seven-time Pro Bowl linebacker. “We like this game. We get the chance to compete against as good a team as there is.”The prospect of facing the Saints and the 39-year-old Brees is enough to make Suggs feel young again.“He’s been here longer than me, so I won’t be the old guy Stitched Kenny Young Jersey ,” Suggs said with a smile. “But definitely, I mean that just goes to his experience. He’s mastered his craft. He’s not showing age; he’s just one of those ferocious, deadly quarterbacks in our league.”Brees is 0-4 lifetime against the Ravens. When the teams last played, in November 2014, Suggs had six tackles and a sack in Baltimore’s 34-27 victory.“He’s the ageless wonder,” Brees said of Suggs. “He’s still playing at such a high level deep in his career, and man, he’s been doing it so well for so long. I’m obviously aware of that they are the only team that I haven’t beaten, but they’ve always had a great team.”Some other things to know about the Saints-Ravens game:DEVELOPING DEFENSEThe Saints’ defense stumbled out of the gate Youth Kenny Young Jersey , but has looked markedly better in the previous two games. New Orleans yielded averages of 421 yards and 34.3 points through its first three games, but allowed fewer than 300 yards and 20 points in each of the past two.The improvement could stem from increasing comfort within the scheme of a few new players, including veteran linebacker Demario Davis and rookie defensive end Marcus Davenport.New Orleans has been — at least statistically — the NFL’s best against the run, allowing just 71.4 yards per game. One reason is that opponents have gone to the air on nearly two-thirds of their offensive plays against the league’s 30th-ranked pass defense.HELLO, OLD FRIENDRavens wide receiver Willie Snead was once one of Brees’ favorite targets. He left for Baltimore as a restricted free agent during the offseason, and now is catching passes from Joe Flacco.“It’s great to see him doing well and doing the things I’m sure a quarterback like Joe appreciates,” Saints coach Sean Payton said.Snead intends to trade jerseys with Brees after the game.“Absolutely,” Brees said. “He’s a stud, man. I love Willie.”ELUSIVE ACHIEVEMENTBrees is trying to become just the third QB in NFL history to defeat every team in the league Stitched Anthony Averett Jersey , joining Brett Favre and Peyton Manning.Now in his 13th season with the Saints after five years with the Chargers, Brees is still searching for a victory against the Ravens.“I would love to beat these guys,” Brees said. “You always know it is going to be a slugfest.”HOME AGAINComing off a three-game road trip, the Ravens play four of the next five at home, where they’re 61-21 since coach John Harbaugh arrived in 2008.“We get to play in front of our home fans, so that’s going to be exciting,” Suggs said. “It feels like it’s been forever since they got the opportunity to see us play.”EMERGING TARGETSIt took three games for free-agent acquisition Cameron Meredith to make his first catch with New Orleans and four games for third-round draft choice Tre’Quan Smith to make his initial reception.Now it appears as if they’ve got the hang of it. Smith had touchdowns of 62 and 35 yards against Washington, and Meredith had five catches for 71 yards, including a 46-yard gain. Their emergence has strengthened a receiving group led by Michael Thomas Youth Anthony Averett Jersey , who leads the club with 46 catches for 519 yards. The Ravens are set to announce a new deal with tight end Nick Boyle at a press conference on Thursday and details of his new deal have leaked out ahead of that event.According to multiple reports, Boyle signed a three-year, $18 million deal to remain in Baltimore. The signing comes a couple of days after the Ravens visited with former Patriots tight end Dwayne Allen, who was seen as a blocking-first option to take over the kind of work that Boyle handled for the Ravens.Whether that visit helped move Boyle and the Ravens closer to a deal is a question for that press conference, but the deal suggests that the Ravens were expecting Boyle to see a good market had he become a free agent next week. The $6 million average annual salary currently ranks 15th among NFL tight ends and Boyle’s blocking ability would have made him a fit for several clubs.With the Boyle deal done, the Ravens may now turn their attention to other impending free agents. Linebackers C.J. Mosley, Terrell Suggs and Zadarius Smith top that list.