OWINGS MILLS, Md. -- As teammates shouted We got your back, Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco acknowledged he was taken aback by comments from former teammate Ray Lewis, who called out the former Super Bowl MVP for a lack of passion for the game.Its a little surprising coming from Ray, Flacco said after Fridays practice. But its been something Ive dealt with probably back before high school. Its just part of my personality. When things are going good, its questioned as if its a good thing. When things arent going as well as you might like them to be, its always a question as to whether my personality is that of one that fits what an NFL quarterback should be. Its not anything Im not used to. But it is a little bit different coming from Ray.On Thursday, Lewis told Fox Sports 1 that Flaccos emotionless approach to football is a reason for the quarterbacks inconsistency. Flacco ranks 29th in the NFL in passer rating (78.3) this season, throwing as many interceptions (nine) as touchdowns.Gifted? Absolutely. Passionate about what he do? Ive never seen that, Lewis said. I dont know what that looks like.Lewis comments struck a nerve in the Ravens locker room and seemed to galvanize many players leading up to Sundays high-profile road game against the Cowboys.Safety Eric Weddle and cornerback Jimmy Smith could be heard shouting support in the background while Flacco spoke to reporters. Flacco smiled when he heard the uproar in the locker room.Its just odd that you hear Ray Lewis saying something, Weddle said. Joe Flacco won you a Super Bowl; did you forget about that?Flacco helped Lewis and the Ravens to the Super Bowl in 2012 with a nearly unprecedented postseason run. He joined Joe Montana as the only players to produce 11 touchdowns and zero interceptions in the playoffs.In addressing Lewis comments, Flacco never took a shot at the player who has a statue outside M&T Bank Stadium. Flacco initially didnt see what Lewis said about him, but he decided to watch after coach John Harbaugh brought it up Friday morning.You want to be able to listen to what he says and all that, Flacco said. I know he hasnt been here for a while. We want him to feel a part of this place. We want him to come around.Wide receiver Steve Smith Sr.?showed respect for the future Hall of Fame linebacker, saying Lewis voice carries weight. But he also pointed out that time has passed and players change.Lewis has been away from the Ravens locker room for four years, which is nearly as long as he was teammates with Flacco (2008-12).You dont play this game this long and be able to accomplish some of the things that Joe Flacco, Ray Lewis, Ed Reed, all the great guys that have played with the Baltimore Ravens that Ive admired, you dont play this long without having a drive or a passion for the game, Smith said.Weddle was not as restrained when it came to Lewis.We love Joe. Hes our guy, Weddle said. Hes a great teammate, professional, leads, everything you want. Its kind of irrelevant. We dont really care what the outside thinks. For an old teammate to say that, its just like, Dont you have something better to talk about? I guess he didnt.Flacco has often been called Joe Cool for his stoic and quiet demeanor. But members in the organization pointed out that Flacco shows his passion in different ways. He never missed a game until his eighth season, putting together the fifth-longest streak for an NFL quarterback. When he tore two ligaments in his knee last November, he stayed in the game to finish out the final few plays. In getting back from the knee injury, he never missed a day of rehab.I think everybody expresses their passion in different ways, Harbaugh said. Youve got a locker room full of guys and an office full of coaches. Everybody is different. Every personality is different. Every single guy does their thing in a different way, but every single guy here cares deeply and works very hard and wants to be great at what they do.Will Flacco call Lewis to address the comments?Probably not, Flacco said. Me and Ray are going to cross paths again. It might be brought up. It might not. Who knows? Stitched Jerseys Ireland . 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Round 7 was a see-sawing affair that saw two sets of back to back games. The top of the table Sydney Kings and Perth Wildcats split their games while the New Zealand Breakers and Illawarra Hawks also split theirs.Home court advantage was a big factor this week as five of the six games fell to the home side; Adelaide were the only side not to deliver in front of their home crowd.Melbourne finally returned to the winners list with the return of star guard Chris Goulding, as well as welcoming in new import, Casper Ware.Unfortunately, the action wasnt exactly edge of your seat material as only one out of the six games was decided by single figures.So who and what stood out the most during round 7?Hot StartsJumping out of the blocks and getting a quick start against your opponent is crucial in games of basketball. It puts the opposition squarely behind the eight ball and can force them to throw away the game plan in the hopes of getting back into the game.Every side that won the opening quarter this round won the game.Brisbane stunned Adelaide, hitting more threes in the opening quarter than Adelaide did for the entire game. New Zealand flew out of the blocks and scored the opening 12 points against Illawarra in their opening game; a deficit that was to great too overcome.Welcome ReturnChris Goulding finally pulled on the United jersey again and it couldnt have come at a better time for his side. United had lost five straight since Goulding went down with his ankle injury against the Brisbane Bullets in round 3. Squaring off against the Cairns Taipans and hoping to get off the bottom of the ladder, Goulding was firing on all cylinders.Finishing the game with 30 points and an incredible 8/12 from beyond the arc, equalling the United record for made threes in a game. Hitting big shot after big shot and carrying his side over the line.Problems at HomeHome court is supposed to be your fortress, a place where you can impose your will on opposing teams.ddddddddddddUnfortunately for Adelaide, their stadium has effectively become a home away from home for opposing teams.Adelaide have now lost their last four games and more importantly their last two games have been at home. To add some salt into the wounds, theyve lost both games by double digits.The first step in solving any problem is recognizing there is one, Adelaide need to recognize that they have a major problem on their hands.Johnny FlameWith 7:19 left on the game clock in the fourth quarter and the Kings down by 15 points, they were screaming for answers; thats when Brad Newley caught fire and morphed into Johnny Flame.In the space of 2 minutes and 44 seconds, Newley hit four three pointers and brought the Kings to within 4 points.Running around screens and hitting from all around the arc, Newley was simply unstoppable; ultimately finishing with 34 points and hitting 7/10 from deep. Sadly for the Kings, it wasnt enough as the Wildcats ran away with the contest.BlowoutsRound 7 saw the biggest average winning margin of any round so far this season, eclipsing the round four average of 12.6. With only the one game decided by single digits, the average margin of victory over the weekend ended up a whopping; 15.5 points.Illawarra helped this margin with their 31 point decimation of New Zealand in the final game of the round. So far this season there have been two games decided by over 30 points and Illawarra are responsible for both.There have been 42 games during the 2016/17 NBL season with the average margin of victory sitting at 10.47 points. Whilst the competition has been hotter than ever, the games are unfortunately reflecting a more one-sided affair. ' ' '