The annual 'Battle of the Beltway' renews its rivalry as the Baltimore Ravens host their I-95 neighbor to the south, the Washington Redskins in the third pre-season game for both teams. This is also the most important game of the exhibition season as teams usually try to keep their starters in the game for as much as three quarters to get them game reps before resting them most of the final game prior to the regular season beginning in under three weeks.
Expect a heated game, with a little more on the line than a typical pre-season contest. Local bragging rights will go to the winner, as fans of both teams want to win this game as much as some of the regular season game. Whether or not the coaches and players feel the same way is another story, although Ravens head coach John Harbaugh alluded to, but tried to downplay the rivalry in his recent press conference at the team's Owings Mills practice facility the other day in a story on BaltimoreRavens.com.
Baltimore always seems to have a bit of an inferiority complex when it comes to competing in sports with DC, but now it appears that the Ravens are a much more successful NFL franchise than the Redskins have been over the past three seasons and many might argue for the past decade. Either way, while this game won't count in NFL standings, it certainly will count between the fans of both teams, at least for the next week or so.