The greatness of Ray Lewis will never be forgotten

[The Camden Crow]

It is worth watching the video on his retirement! http://www.baltimoreravens.com/

My wife and I have been right there with Ray for 17 seasons. We started off going to the games at Memorial Stadium. We were just dating back then. We endured long bus rides from Ellicott City to Memorial Stadium/ had our car towed twice/and lost most of the time. But we saw Ray Lewis as a 20 year old MLB and have watched him for 17 years, year in year out, never quitting at anything.

The year we were married we moved into M&T Stadium. We have sat 7 rows right behind Ray for 15 seasons now at M&T. We watched him on the sideline at every game and how he was always talking with teammates about this or that, or just standing intensely by himself watching the game he loved. And once on the field he was like a locomotive busting up cabooses. How can any of us ever forget that he is most likely the greatest MLB the game has ever seen!!?

We stayed with him through good days and bad, through his trial back in 2000, and never had any doubt that he would overcome all the adversity. I defended him for over two years on this website. And how he has done it!! What a man he is!! We will be there Sunday with tears in our eyes. But they will be tears of love and friendship toward Ray. May he do as well in his next phase of life as he has done with the past 17 seasons here in Baltimore!! I am not sure I can go to M&T with him being gone...

[Baltimore Ravens Lets Go!]

Beautiful post. Thanks for sharing. As many different folks have said, Ray Lewis is the Baltimore Ravens. He embodies the term "Play Like A Raven" as well. I think Mike Ditka even said he is the greatest linebacker he has ever seen and he played on the same team with Butus, and coached Singletary. He is also very familiar with LT as he coached during his playing days as well.

[The Camden Crow]

We all lost Johnny U in 1972 when he was traded to the Chargers. We then endured 12 years without football in Baltmiore... ... .. what an emptiness ...never ever able to say goodbye to Johnny U as we should have been able to...

Then the Ravens came to be and 220 lb linebacker by the name of Ray Lewis showed up in the fall of 1996 ...

...now 17 years later the curtain will close on this chapter of Baltimore sports history. This will be Ray's last home game ever at M&T!

Does anyone else outside of Baltimore, everyone else in America, do any of them understand just what it means to us all to have had Ray for 17 seasons and to have seen him play with Ed Reed and T Sizzle and Michael McCrary and Peter Boulware and Tony Siragusa etc., etc...?

No they don't understand....

No one else in America understands what Ray Lewis means to us all. He is like a son to many of us or like a brother and for younger folks he could be a great model for a father... not a perfect man but a man who always got up after every fall, professional and personal!

All I can say now is what I once said about Johnny Unitas and now about Ray:

"Baltimore, love your true and great football heroes!
They are rare and glorious!"

[Baltimore Ravens Lets Go!]

We all lost Johnny U in 1972 when he was traded to the Chargers. We then endured 12 years without football in Baltmiore... ... .. what an emptiness ...never ever able to say goodbye to Johnny U as we should have been able to...

Then the Ravens came to be and 220 lb linebacker by the name of Ray Lewis showed up in the fall of 1996 ...

...now 17 years later the curtain will close on this chapter of Baltimore sports history. This will be Ray's last home game ever at M&T!

Does anyone else outside of Baltimore, everyone else in America, do any of them understand just what it means to us all to have had Ray for 17 seasons and to have seen him play with Ed Reed and T Sizzle and Michael McCrary and Peter Boulware and Tony Siragusa etc., etc...?

No they don't understand....

No one else in America understands what Ray Lewis means to us all. He is like a son to many of us or like a brother and for younger folks he could be a great model for a father... not a perfect man but a man who always got up after every fall, professional and personal!

All I can say now is what I once said about Johnny Unitas and now about Ray:

"Baltimore, love your true and great football heroes!
They are rare and glorious!"

Amen to that. I don't think anyone could express it any better than you just did.

[Fang]

Brooks, Cal, Johnny U and Ray. Baltimore has had the best.

[Peej7245]

Brooks, Cal, Johnny U and Ray. Baltimore has had the best.

Notice how the players like the ones you list above are beloved not because they played for a long time ..... but because they played at an astoundingly high level for a long time!

Players like these were able to do that because they loved and respected their games...and showed us how to do the same.

Ray's going to look good in that gold jacket!

[The Camden Crow]

not yet ready for retirement, is he?

3 more games Ray

3 more games and wins and that will just about do it!!

then you can retire