MCALISTER’S STATUS STILL UNCLEAR

Ravens linebacker Ray Lewis routinely asks his teammates, “Any dogs in the house?” As to cornerback Chris McAlister, the more accurate question is whether he’s in the doghouse. He apparently is, but it’s still not clear why. Harbaugh has suggested that McAlister, a first-round pick way back in 1999, violated team rules. But Harbaugh says that McAlister’s unexpected benching against the Dolphins in Week Seven wasn’t disciplinary in nature. “The man said he put his best 11 on the field,” McAlister said Wednesday. “Obviously, he thinks Frank [Walker] is better than me.” McAlister apparently disagrees with the assessment. “You all go look at the tape of the first four weeks and tell me if it feels like I need to be on the field or not,” McAlister said, according to Aaron Wilson of the Carroll County Times. So what does McAlister have to do to get back into the lineup? “They haven’t told me that I have to do anything,” McAlister said. “They’re going to do whatever they want to do. It’s up to them.” Harbaugh said Tuesday night that McAlister had committed an “embarrassing” violation of the team dress code, showing up in a T-shirt and shorts while his teammates wore suits. But Harbaugh says that the decision not to start McAlister was unrelated to McAlister’s decision not to comply with the rules. “To be clear and specific about the way we do it, none of it has to do with any player as far as the way they dress,” Harbaugh said. “That is a discipline issue and we handle it as a discipline issue. It’s separate from the playing time. “We put the best 11 players out there for that situation. I don’t know how you can be much more clear than that. It applies to Chris just like it applies to any other player on our team. I think it’s pretty clear-cut what I’m saying.” If McAlister is in the process of losing his starting position, he also could be losing his job. His base salary is $8 million this year, next year, and in 2010, the final season of his contract. There’s no way the Ravens will carry that cap number for a nickel or dime back.