Here's a snippet of what Ravens linebacker Ray Lewis had to say on his weekly radio show last night.

On what the Ravens are going through right now

“I think we’re just going through what you call a test of what the process is. … What is the test? As a leader, having been through so much of it, now learning what the process really is. Our defense didn’t become great in one season. The 2000 defense became great over multiples of seasons, of ’96, ’97, ’98, ’99.

"If you look at our team now, it’s happening in the same fashion. The last two weeks were difficult, we have a lot of young guys we’re trying to plug in here, plug in there. You’re playing with 21-year-old, 22-year-old corners, you’re trying to get them to understand the magnitude of how huge it is.

"But their eyes are big, everybody’s having fun and then you see they know exactly where our weakness was. That’s football. You’re trying to teach these young kids something through this. You’re trying to say, ‘Does the way you approach work change? Does the way you approach life change? Suppose someone else goes and wins the Super Bowl. Are you bitter, or do you plan to get better?

"My message to my guys is, ‘Whoever is going to win the Super Bowl, let them win it.’ The positives and the tests that we’re going through right now, we have to understand what we’re going through and why we’re going through it. Whatever we’re going through right now, we have to go through together. The easiest thing to do in life is walk around when everything is great. …

"For me the excitement is to see these babies play a man’s game and they’re responding.”

On the motivation for fans to keep coming to games

"The motivation is just the opportunity in life. When I came to Baltimore, in 1996, we won four games that year. We were 4-12. I could have easily said, ‘Why I am in Baltimore?’ The next year we came back 6-9-1, the following year we were 6-10.

"When you talk about watching your team, you’re going because the picture is much greater, whether you’re a Landry or a Prude, your journey is just beginning. You never stop. That’s what greatness is. Greatness is accepting the opportunity.

"If you ride with us one week (as a fan) make sure you ride with us the next week."

On whether Steve McNair should be benched in favor of Kyle Boller

"I don’t know, I don’t know. Those are questions for Brian and all of them to figure out.

"For me, the bottom is, as the leader of my defense, we have things we have to get right. We can’t look at somebody else and say, ‘You need to be playing this guy.’

"There are things we have to get better [on defense]. The ball doesn’t have to go over our head. We don’t have to miss tackles. As a team, there’s a lot to get better. Offense wasn’t on the field when Pittsburgh was throwing the ball over our heads last Monday. This is a journey. Anybody can jump off the train."

On why the Ravens haven't found an emotional leader on offense

“I don’t know. Whether they’re vocal leaders like I am or quiet leaders as well, that’s the way the cards have been dealt. The guys who we have are great leaders and great talents, but they’re totally different types. When you look for it from other guys, you just want to make sure it’s not false. You don’t want someone to go outside of their shell when it’s not real.’’

On the reaction from one of his kids after the game

“My oldest daughter could see there was something wrong with me. She said, ‘Daddy what’s wrong?’ I’m like, ‘You know, we didn’t win the game.’ And she said, ‘Daddy you always told me all you can do is do your best.’

"What she inspired in me was that the next morning I probably worked out the hardest I worked out all year."

The show in its entirety can be heard by going to espn1300.com