Coach John Harbaugh addressed the media this afternoon and sounded optimistic that cornerback Samari Rolle (neck surgery) and linebacker Brendon Ayanbadejo (sprained ankle) could play in Sunday's game against the Cleveland Browns.

Rolle has not played in the last five games, but he seems to be further along in his recovery compared to strong safety Dawan Landry, who has also missed the last five games because of a spinal cord concussion.

"We feel like Samari is a little ahead of Dawan," Harbaugh said. "I don’t think it’s ruled out for Dawan this week, but it probably is pessimistic. For Samari, I don’t know if it’s optimistic, but there’s a chance he’s going to be able to play. So we’re going to get him out there to practice and see how he does and we’re going to push hard to see if we can get him into this game."

While cornerback Frank Walker played well in yesterday's game, Harbaugh emphasized that the team is awaiting the return of cornerback Chris McAlister (right knee).

"We want him on the field playing as much as possible and we want to manage the reps and put him in the best situation to get through the whole season," Harbaugh said. "He’s going to be playing a lot of football for us. Unless something turns with the knee, he’s going to be playing a ton of football for us, and he’s going to be a huge part of what we’re doing.”

Finally, the status of wide receiver/return specialist Yamon Figurs is still unclear. "Yamon is iffy," Harbaugh said. "He’s got a chance to be back there. If Yamon is healthy, he’s going to be returning for us in some form or fashion. But we’re kind of excited about Ray and we’re kind of excited about Jim."

Other notes:

* Harbaugh was slightly displeased at the number of false starts in yesterday's win. Left offensive tackle Jared Gaither was flagged twice and fullback Le'Ron McClain once. "There’s no reason for a pre-snap penalty," Harbaugh said. "We challenge our guys with a lot of shifts, a lot of motion, a lot of different cadences, and we want to do that because we want to slow down defenses as far as getting off the ball and we want to create as much confusion. We want to attack people with our formations. So that’s something we’ve got to get better at. We’re not willing to give that stuff up as an attack method. So we’ve got to get better and eliminate that stuff."

* Harbaugh was wary of the Sunday's opponent, the Cleveland Browns. Since beginning the season with three straight losses, the Browns have won three of their last four contests. The Ravens won the teams' first meeting, 28-10, but Harbaugh anticipates a vastly different Cleveland team. "I think you need to work even harder," Harbaugh said of meeting an opponent for the second time this season. "Not take for granted the fact that you played them and you think you know all about them because everybody evolves as a football team. They’re changing, we’re changing, and we’ve got to make sure we understand what they’re bringing to the table."

* Sunday's game begins a stretch of three consecutive road games. The Ravens recently completed a three-game road trip with a 1-2 record. But Harbaugh did not seem too concerned, saying, "We don't have any messages about the road. ... We take a plane, we've got a nice hotel, and buses will be waiting for us. We're looking forward to the big challenge."