andy dalton surprised and surpassed most expectations. the last time, he threw for 373 yards but made a few rocky mistakes. he did not have a.j. greene at his disposal, and he is exactly the kind of person to give the ravens effect. with unspectacular statistics, it doesn't tell the story of this season. clearly, the kid can play. he doesn't really sound like he loves what he sees. >> of the more you see the guy, the better off you are going to be. it helps you to have more take on any employer. we have more take on all the young guys, and we have more tape on the quarterback. it is good tape, he is a good player. they have weapons. and everybody has seen that cleared of jerome simpson. that was pretty impressive. have playmakers we are certainly going to have to deal with. >> pretty impressive is accurate. there are compelling matchups early on, miami heat down south beach way, a decisive star, a rookie from cleveland state. the celtics runback, a common force for miami. goodness gracious. that's a good strong 20 points. -- the nets get

i love andy dalton and a.j. green. these young receivers with dalton can make some plays. and i think with the three home games, they make some hay and get themselves in the playoffs. >> bob: all right, tony, thanks. mike florio will have more on nbc sports talk. mike, a number of big-name players suffered injuries today. run them down for us, please. >> mike: the bears playoff chances took a hit with what is believed to be a partially torn mvl suffered by star running back matt forte. more testing to come, but it's likely he's going to miss a couple of weeks with that knee jury injury. andre johnson missed a couple of games. today he suffered an injury to his left hamstring. he told reporters after the game he'll be fine. he'll have an mri tomorrow. patrick willis, another hamstring injury, another mri on monday, but he also believes that he'll be fine. and finally for the packers, cornerback charles woodson has a concussion and once that diagnosis is applied, until an independent neurologist clears woodson, he won't be able to practice or play. >> al: thanks a lot. we ta

i love andy dalton and a.j. green. these young receivers with dalton can make some plays. and i think with the three home games, they make some hay and get themselves in the playoffs. >> bob: all right, tony, thanks. mike florio will have more on nbc sports talk. mike, a number of big-name players suffered injuries today. run them down for us, please. >> mike: the bears playoff chances took a hit with what is believed to be a partially torn mvl suffered by star running back matt forte. more testing to come, but it's likely he's going to miss a couple of weeks with that knee jury injury. andre johnson missed a couple of games. today he suffered an injury to his left hamstring. he told reporters after the game he'll be fine. he'll have an mri tomorrow. patrick willis, another hamstring injury, another mri on monday, but he also believes that he'll be fine. and finally for the packers, cornerback charles woodson has a concussion and once that diagnosis is applied, until an independent neurologist clears woodson, he won't be able to practice or play. >> al: thanks a lot. we ta

the ravens will head to cincinnati this weekend where andy dalton has surpassed expectations this seasonthe last time he faced the ravens, he threw for 373 yards but made some rookie mistakes. he did not have green last month. he is big and strong and fast. dalton has settled with some solid statistics. coach john harbaugh is happy to have more tape to review on dalton but it doesn't salic he loves what he sees. -- and sound like he loves what he sees. >> we have more tape another young guys. we have more tape on the quarterback is a big plus for us. it's a good tape and he is a good player. they have weapons. everybody has seen that clip of simpson. that was pretty impressive. they have some talented young players on offense. they have playmakers that we have to deal with. >> i wish he would try to do that flipped against the ravens. that was pretty impressive. >> a workshop recall. one stuffed animal is being pulled from shelves. >> the most wonderful time of year for the ravens. this year's ravens festival t- shirts. >> the clock is ticking for the count of new year's eve. >> our late

the rookie and the dalton -- andy dalton having a great year.he ravens did intercept three of his passes. one here by ed reed. they will go for the season sweep on sunday. 4:15 kickoff. gerry sandusky in cincinnati with the play-by-play. bass will, another when -- college basketball, another win for the women maryland basketball team. it was a tough game. maryland ranks fifth in the country. she had nine rebounds. maryland wins. the heisman trophy winner robert griffin ii and baylor be it wasn't last night in a defensive struggle indelible ball. -- bowl. atcoming up, we're looking it live picture and we will update you on traffic along pulaski highway and the rest of the major roads. >> four days to go until the iowa caucuses. how the candidates are trying to win over voters. >> the governor looks ahead to >> the governor looks ahead to 2012 and

andy dalton leads the bengals to nine wins and a shot of the playoffs. he threw for 370 yards the last time he played the ravens. >> they are hoping for more rookie mistakes. dalton did not have a.j. green last month. dalton has settled with salt statistics. john harbaugh is happy to have more tape on dalton since their last meeting but it does not sound like he loves what he sees. >> i think the more you see a guy, the better off you're going to be. it help to have more tape on any player. we have more tape on all their young guys. we have more tape on the quarterback is a big plus for us. it's a good tape and he is a good player. they have weapons. everybody has seen that clip of simpson. that was pretty impressive. they have some talented young players on offense. they have playmakers that we have to deal with. >> hmm. >> that was quite a play. i have seen you do that. >> i have to give myself palmumped up. a baltimore favorite is back in town. >> one year ago today, phylicia barnes disappeared. i have more on how the investigation is going right now

. >>> the ravens will be looking to bring down the cincinnati bengals quarterback and -- and andy dalton as they head out to ohio for the regular season finale, it is a game we will bring you sunday afternoon at 4:00 live here. >>> imagine a job that offered unlimited vacations, that is the deal for a vacation planning website. they allow employees to take as much time off as they want as long as their job goals are met. won't that be nice. >> that is a fair deal. that is a totally fair deal. >> you could say it is research, going to research wedding venues. >> you know what? >> huh? >> however it works however it makes the roads smoother -- >> yeah -- >> -- amen, isn't that the truth. let's take a look at that. skies are crystal clear, 44 is the high, this sunny day start is going to eventually become overcast. no rain, it is a push of warm air moving our way that will take us three shy to 60 tomorrow. >>> all right, coming up on coffee with, two nondescript people sitting over there. we will do the formal introductions in a second. see these two folks who you might just be in a grocery

bengal's quarterback andy dalton to simpson and speaking of flips, arizona's no. 5, daryl washingtonelieve he got jumped. they can still get a wild-card spot. >>> giant and jets sharing the same venou venue at metlife stadium. 164 yards and a touchdown for victor cruz. somebody stop victor cruz -- nobody will stop victor cruz. 29-13 and giants could win the nfc east by beating dallas next sunday. >>> the eagles beat dallas for the second time this season. michael vick to brent celek to starts the scoring. tony romo hit his throwing hand on a players helmet. x-rays negative. charlotte today, cam newton said the a new passing yardage record for a rookie. newton can run as well as he can pass. cam newton, 49 yards, forget tim tebow, this is the new nfl quarterback prototype. playoff-bound baltimore wins 11-4. steelers are 11-4 and where without ben roethlisberger shut out the rams. >> tennessee wins to go 8-7 to dismay the hunt for the finality affect ♪ [ ukulele strumming ] ♪ [ folksy whistling ] [ man ] quitting is a fight you can't let yourself lose. it can take many tries. but keep