Ray Lewis was 'heart and soul' of Ravens

Ray Lewis, an outstanding linebacker and leader for 17 years, is a worthy first-ballot Hall of Fame entrant.

Ray Lewis arrived in Baltimore shortly after the transplanted Cleveland Browns, who were attempting to start anew in a city that had gone 12 years without an NFL team.

Selected 26th overall in the 1996 draft after establishing himself as a star at the University of Miami, Lewis had no idea what he was getting into.

“We had no team. We had no logo. We had nothing,” Lewis recalled. “There was nothing to really respect.”

Over the next 17 years, the Baltimore Ravens reached the postseason nine times, won two Super Bowls and built a hard-hitting and relentless defense in the image of Lewis, their unquestioned leader.

A 13-time Pro Bowl selection and two-time NFL Defensive Player of the Year, Lewis helped make the Ravens far better than respectable while estab-

himself as one of the best linebackers to play the game.

His unparalleled play and unmatched leadership made him an obvious first-ballot entrant into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Lewis received the news last February, and still gets chills thinking about it.

“That knock on the door was like the first time I got my first jersey,” Lewis

said. “It was like when you ran home and you wanted to put on your pads. You weren’t playing no game, you just wanted to put on your pads because you were part of an elite team. You made it. So, it’s almost like the same feeling.”

He will be enshrined Saturday, joining offensive tackle Jonathan Ogden as the second Ravens star to have a bust in Canton, Ohio.

“It’s pretty clear Ray was the heart and soul of the Ravens for 17 years. If anyone is deserving of this honor, it’s Ray Lewis,” Ogden

said. “He is a guy we all looked to — both on offense and defense — to lead our team.”

There are many great linebackers in the Hall of Fame. Few of them combined skill and authority the way Lewis did.

After delivering an emotional speech before the game , Lewis would continue to push his teammates in the huddle before taking ownership of the middle of the field, looking to punish anyone in a different jersey.

“One of a kind. I think

he’s the best that ever played,” Ravens coach John Harbaugh said. “It’s not just the on-field play; it’s the whole package.”

Harbaugh acknowledged he carries the bias that comes with coaching Lewis for the final five years of his NFL career. Others, however, back the assertion.

“He’s the best I’ve seen,” said Mike Singletary, a Hall of Fame linebacker and former assistant coach in Baltimore. “If people thought I was good, I know that Ray was better.”