As they've fought over the same high-end real estate in the upper reaches of the AFC, the Ravens have in recent seasons become a team by which the Patriots can measure themselves. They've become familiar foes, facing off four times in the past three seasons. And the repetition has prompted them to become fierce rivals.

But this time that measuring stick figures to be different — as typically when New England and Baltimore do business it's a chance for the Patriots' offense to find out how it compares with one of the league's best defensive units, though this time their battle is likely to say more about the legitimacy of the Pats' own defense than it does about anything else.

By and large, these are the same two programs that met to decide the AFC champion last January — but over the course of the two weeks that have led up to tonight rematch at M&T Bank Stadium the Ravens have started to look like a multi-layered and versatile attack, while the Patriots' defense has so far ranked among the best in the league, and this marks the Patriots' opportunity to prove that those performances against Tennessee and Arizona weren't merely the product of poor competition.

After all, this isn't the typical Baltimore team of the past decade, when offense was always the Achilles' heel. Employing an up-tempo, no-huddle style, the Ravens hung 44 points on a good Bengals defense in the opener, and even after struggling during the second half of last week's loss to the Eagles they still rank second in the league at 33.5 points per game.

Just as the teams' 2009 wild-card playoff matchup did, it all starts with Ray Rice — the multipurpose weapon who is a threat every time he touches the ball, and who totaled more than 2,000 yards from scrimmage last season. Not only was he second in the NFL with 1,364 rushing yards, but he was Baltimore's leading pass catcher with 76 receptions. Anquan Boldin's 57 were the next-most on the team.

In four career meetings with New England, Rice has had performances where he averaged 9.4 and 7.3 yards per carry, though in the other two contests he's been held to less than 3.2 yards per haul — including the AFC championship in which he managed just 67 yards on 21 tries.

The Patriots' clear priority that day was to quell Rice and let Flacco try to beat them. And though he couldn't — thanks to a clutch pass breakup from cornerback Sterling Moore, and Billy Cundiff's missed field goal — his terrific, 306-yard performance at least served notice that stopping the Ravens is no longer as simple as slowing their star runner. Then the quarterback continued making that statement through the first week and a half of this season, playing near-perfectly in that rout of Cincinnati and then playing well again at Philadelphia before things fell apart late.

Flacco's 45-21 regular-season record as a starter suggests he's long been a capable NFL quarterback, but he's recently become an elite passer at home — having posted a passer rating of at least 97 in five of his last six starts in the Charm City — and seemed to especially thrive when offensive coordinator Cam Cameron let him handle some of the hurry-up play calling a couple of weeks ago.

He is expected to be given that same opportunity amid the comforts of M&T tonight. And if the Patriots can handle it, it will be time to start thinking their improvements are real. It will be validation of the numbers that currently say they're the seventh-best pass defense, fifth-best run defense, fourth-best scoring defense, and second-best total yardage defense in all of football.

As usual, it will be a chance to leave against Baltimore knowing how they measure up against one of the league's best. It just won't necessarily be in the usual way.

“They are doing a great job rushing the ball, also in the passing game,” said Pats defensive coordinator Matt Patricia. “Keeping it very balanced from an offensive-attack standpoint and then mix in what appears to be hurry-up or no-huddle offense, change the pace of the game. They are doing a great job this year. We certainly have our work cut out for us.”

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UNDERRATED: Dennis Pitta. The tight end scored against the Pats in the AFC title game, and has emerged as Flacco's security blanket early this season — targeted 23 times through two games. He's caught 13 of those balls for 138 yards, and is a threat.

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OVERRATED: Ravens' pass rush. Without the injured Terrell Suggs, Baltimore's greatest defensive strength is its secondary — led by the inimitable Ed Reed (who already has two interceptions), but also featuring Patriots killer Bernard Pollard and talented corners Lardarius Webb, Cary Williams and Jimmy Smith. Avoiding turnovers in the back should be more of a concern for New England than its ability to handle the pressure up front.

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KEEP AN EYE ON...: Corey Graham. The former University of New Hampshire standout signed with the Ravens during the offseason after making his name —- and making the Pro Bowl — as a special teams player with the Bears. The 27-year-old has dressed and played in both of Baltimore's games this season, making three tackles in the opener before going without a takedown in Week 2.

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KEY MATCHUP: Torrey Smith vs. Patriots secondary. Flacco has a big arm, and since the start of 2010 the Ravens are just 3-3 when he fails to complete a pass for longer than 22 yards — compared with 24-8 otherwise. They're 11-3 when he hits on a throw that gains at least 40 yards. Smith is Baltimore's speedy home-run hitter, and it'll be up to New England's cover men to keep him in front of them.

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STAT OF THE WEEK: Patriots tight end Aaron Hernandez is out tonight with a high ankle sprain. In the two games he missed last season, Wes Welker had 375 yards receiving and was targeted on 34 of Tom Brady's 75 passes. However, Welker has never had more than 53 receiving yards in any single game against Baltimore.

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Dave D'Onofrio covers Boston sports for the New Hampshire Union Leader and Sunday News. His e-mail address is ddonof13@gmail.com. Twitter: @davedonofrio