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It might not be as wild as it used to be, but the Wildcat offense is still a threat anytime you face the Dolphins.
That's why, despite the fact that Miami has yet to utilize their Wildcat formation nearly as much this season as they had in the previous two, the Ravens are still spending practice time this week preparing for the unorthodox offensive look.
"It's right there. They can turn the Wildcat on at anytime," head coach John Harbaugh said. "I doubt they have to practice it to run it. So, we definitely have to be prepared for that. That's something that we have to spend time working on."
In Tony Sparano's first two years as head coach in Miami, the Dolphins brought an entire new element to their offense which quickly became the hot trend in the NFL.
They started giving running back Ronnie Brown the direct snap in a shotgun formation, and out of that set, Brown had some plays where he would carry the ball, others where he could hand off to fellow running back Ricky Williams, and at times, he even would throw the ball himself.
The formation was incredibly effective, and as a result, got adapted by a number of teams around the league.
This season, Miami has used the Wildcat much more infrequently. The reason for that, Sparano says, is that with the addition of wide receiver Brandon Marshall and the emergence of Davone Bess, the Dolphins no longer need to rely on trickeration to put up yardage and points.
"I think two seasons ago when we started this thing, it was largely due to the fact that we needed to get our playmakers on the field at the same time," Sparano said in a conference call with Baltimore reporters this week. "That was Ricky and Ronnie and trying to get them involved together. Right now we feel like there's other people that can make plays on this team rather than having to go to that package.
"We use it more right now as something that if we've seen it on film and it's really clear to us we'll do it. If not, there's really no need."
Brown agreed with his head coach on that front, but said that the Wildcat can still be a weapon when it is put into play.
"It's just another one of those formations that is an opportunity for our football team, and we're able to jump into it like jumping into a no-huddle situation," Brown said. "Unfortunately we haven't used it a lot but at that same time we still have it there every week."
Which is why the Ravens still expect to see the formation put into play this weekend. Members of the Baltimore defense know that Miami has used the Wildcat less this season, but they insist that they still need to be ready for it.
"You definitely do, because Ronnie Brown is dangerous with it, and when you've got Ronnie Brown and Ricky Williams running it, it's pretty crazy," linebacker Terrell Suggs said. "It's intense, and Ronnie, he can throw the ball, so you definitely have to prepare for it.
"They're still very effective at it if you ask me. I mean, as long as you've got those two in the game, it can pop at any minute, and we just don't want to be the team that it pops on."
So, if the Dolphins do drop a little of the Wildcat in there on Sunday, what's the best way to defend against it?
"Just play disciplined," linebacker Ray Lewis said. "Nobody try to do something that they shouldn't be doing, because if you do [overreact] on their Wildcat, you never know if a pass is going to come out of it [or if] Ronnie Brown is throwing the ball out of it and things like that. So, you just have to be conscious of what's going on. But just hit your gaps and just keep the ball funneled inside. Pretty much that's kind of one way to slow it down, but they do have a lot of tricks coming out of it. So, expect for anything, really."
