Sports writers like words that elicit a visceral reaction when you hear them. Words that create a mental picture. Battle. Combat. Trenches. War. They all work as euphemisms for the task at hand -- beating your opponent on the football field.

But there is one word that has crept into sports parlance that doesn't usually make sense -- Gauntlet.

"Gauntlet" is a Middle English term used to describe a glove worn with medieval armor to protect the hand. But thanks to being overused in the booth by announcers and sports talk radio personalities, it has also earned a secondary meaning as "an open challenge (as to combat)".

Often they say teams have to "run the gauntlet". I have no idea what that means, but it must be the Medieval equivalent to lining up against Ray Lewis.

Well, that expression is not hyperbole when using it to describe the Ravens schedule over the next three weeks. Three Games ... Three Gunslingers.

This Sunday: Peyton and the hated Colts.

Next Sunday: Big Ben and equally despised Steelers.

Monday Night Dec. 6: Aaron Rodgers and the Packers in the frozen tundra.

Our season hangs in the balance. This is where we find out how good the 2009 Baltimore Ravens really are. To go far in the playoffs we are going to have to beat the Colts and Steelers, so we might as well get started now. It's time for the secondary to play consistently like they did against Denver. It's time for our veterans to lead by example and for our young talent so start building their own legacies.

This is why we love the NFL. See you Sunday from the Bank ... I'll be the guy with the Gauntlet.

-- DAVID KATZ