‘Heart and soul’ of Ravens, Lewis ready to enter Hall
BALTIMORE — 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 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 establishing himself as one of the best linebackers to play the game.
His unparalleled play and leadership made him a firstballot Pro Football Hall of Fame pick. 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.”
He will be enshrined Saturday, joining offensive tackle Jonathan Ogden as the second Raven with 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,” Ogden said.
There are many great linebackers in the Hall. Few of them combined skill and authority the way Lewis did. After delivering an emotional speech before the game, Lewis would continue to push 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 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.
It’s hard to determine Lewis’ most notable quality. His ferocity on the field? His teaching and leadership skills? Or his relentless drive to win? Hall of Fame defensive back Rod Woodson, a teammate on the 2000 Super Bowl team, chooses all of the above. “His singular focus to be the best player and teammate he could be (is) what separates him from other Hall of Famers,” Woodson said. “His play was off the charts.”
Lewis spent countless hours in the weight room and took an equal amount of pride in mastering the mental aspect of the game. He derived great pleasure from matching wits with great quarterbacks, most notably Peyton Manning and Tom Brady.
In his first season in Baltimore, the Ravens finished 4-12. In his final season, Baltimore beat San Francisco 34-31 in the Super Bowl.