Ravens S Ed Reed enters another chess match with Tom Brady

Ravens S Ed Reed will hope to play more mind games with Tom Brady on Sunday night. (Getty Images)

In last season's AFC Championship game between Baltimore and New England, Tom Brady had three reminders written on his wristband.

“Knees flexed -- Down, Down!”

“No turnovers.”

“Find 20 on every play.”

The third reminder refers to Ravens safety Ed Reed, who he's gone head-to-head with six times. Brady's shown a lot of respect for Reed over the years, which appears evident by giving himself a reminder on his wrist.

Brady is 4-0 against Reed and the Ravens in the regular season. He's only lost to Baltimore once, in a Wild Card playoff game after the 2009 regular season, when the Ravens routed the Patriots 33-14.

When the two teams meet again Sunday night, yet another chess match will take place between one of the NFL's great quarterbacks and safeties.

“He's pretty much ingrained in my mind,” Brady said in a conference call with the Baltimore media. “He's such a playmaker for them. He shows up in a lot of different spots.”

Reed said Brady's patience is one of the qualities that sets him apart from most of the NFL's quarterbacks. It's never an easy task going against Brady, regardless of the personnel working around him.

“He's great in his checks and taking his time,” Reed said. “He's a very patient quarterback. With that being said, with the success he's had over his career, it makes it a challenge in itself. Brady is a great quarterback, a hell of a competitor.”

In last year's AFC Championship, Brady was forced to throw underneath most of the game, averaging just 6.6 yards per completion. He also threw two interceptions, one of which came in the fourth quarter that gave life back to a Baltimore team after a costly interception thrown by quarterback Joe Flacco.

Reed and Brady relish these moments when they can go against each other. Reed believes he's going against the best quarterback in the league, and Brady admires Reed as the game's best safety.

“He covers up so much ground back there,” Brady said. “He's got such a great understanding of what offenses do. He studies hard, he's a student of the game. He competes incredibly hard. If you make a mistake, he capitalizes on it.”

Brady said he still sees the same Ravens defense on the field, despite the fact the Ravens are ranked 26th in pass defense, giving up 275 yards through the air after their first two games.

After giving up 371 passing yards to Eagles quarterback Michael Vick, the Ravens secondary will have something to prove against a potentially dangerous New England attack that hasn't been as explosive as its been in previous years to start the season.

If Reed can play mind games with Brady then it's possible Baltimore bounces back from the aerial assault Philadelphia put it through this past Sunday.

Reed said he never noticed the AFC Championship game wristband that reminded the Patriots star quarterback to look for where he was lined up before each play began. When Reed heard about it, he took it as a sign of respect. The feeling's mutual on both sides.

“There's a respect thing there, but at the same time you know someone's watching you all the time,” Reed said. “It makes it challenging to disguise, you have to be more precise in what you're doing. I've never seen it, but I'm always looking at him, too. It's give and take.”

Follow Ravens reporter Jason Butt on Twitter: @CBSRavens and @JasonButtCBS.