"The Ravens are prepared to go into Sunday's AFC North showdown against the Cincinnati Bengals without their emotional leader and top tackler. However, they learned long ago that it would be foolish to rule out middle linebacker Ray Lewis too early.

Lewis, 36, missed a third straight day of practice Friday with a toe injury he sustained in last week's 22-17 loss to the Seattle Seahawks, and he appears likely to be sidelined Sunday, if not longer. But his history and pain tolerance have prompted the Ravens to list him as questionable for the game against Cincinnati at M&T Bank Stadium.

A questionable listing indicates that a player has about a 50 percent chance of playing.

"Ray is Ray, you know? You can't count Ray out," Ravens coach John Harbaugh said. "There could be reports out there and you guys could turn over some rocks and figure it out and ask, and think you have something, and you might have something. But you might not. We're talking about Ray. We'll find out on Sunday, really."

Harbaugh said Lewis' injury, which was diagnosed after a consultation with a foot specialist Thursday, is not a "serious, serious thing" and is something that he could possibly play through.

Lewis, a 12-time Pro Bowl selection and two-time Defensive Player of the Year, has not missed a start since being sidelined for the last two games of the 2007 regular season because of a finger injury. He has started 57 consecutive regular-season games.

"Ray has had shoulders dislocated and he's done 35 push-ups on the sidelines to prove that he can go," Harbaugh said. "He's had hamstrings that he's torn off the bone because he went ahead [and played] when he shouldn't have. I've been updated on some of his history. That's Ray Lewis. The injury is not any kind of a serious, serious thing, or career-threatening. I think I saw a report that it was career-threatening this morning. No, it's not. Ray may not go, he may go. The Bengals will have to prepare for him either way, so it really doesn't matter.""