A Legend Says Farewell

Never before has anyone's retirement announcement in the NFL been as shocking as that of the Baltimore Raven's legendary linebacker Ray Anthony Lewis. When the news of Ray's retirement at the end of this season hit the news wires on January 2nd 2013, it seemed that everything just stopped at that moment in time in the sport's world. This is really something that's going to have to take some time to sink in for all of the Baltimore Raven's fans. Ray Lewis was one of the original Baltimore Ravens. In an interview Ray Lewis said that when he was drafted the Baltimore Ravens still hadn't even been named yet. It's hard to even try to imagine for even one short second a Baltimore Raven's team without Ray Lewis on the field.

The Baltimore Raven's jersey with the number reading 52 on it installed fear on the opposing team's offenses across NFL fields for 17 years. It's hard to even try to imagine a Baltimore Raven's team without Ray Lewis on it. For 17 years Ray Lewis' name was on the Baltimore Raven's team roster, and with Ray's name missing it just won't seem right.

Ray Lewis is indisputably one of the greatest defensive linebackers that the game of professional football has ever saw. He is virtually unmatched in skill in the NFL. His name is one of the first names that come to mind with the word defense in the NFL. Ray Lewis is literally a legend in his own time when it comes to NFL football.

He is the leader and great motivator behind one of the greatest defenses that there ever was in the NFL. Ray Lewis was the Super Bowl MVP of Super Bowl 35. The same defense that only allowed a record breaking 165 points throughout the entire season, and topped it off with a Super Bowl victory against the New York Giants. Ray Lewis is a two time NFL defensive player of the year. He is a three time AFC defensive player of the year, and the only member of the forty sack & thirty interception club.

After going to school at Miami College, the Baltimore Ravens had the good fortune of picking Ray Lewis up in a first round draft pick. Ray Lewis has had an impressive career to date, and was named to the Pro Bowl 13 times. His stats include 41&1/2 sacks, 31 interceptions, 67 pass deflections, 972 tackles, 3 touch downs, and a safety in 228 games and counting. He certainly is a shoe in for the NFL Hall of Fame.

As the city of Baltimore, his team mates, and all Baltimore Raven fans are both shocked and saddened by the news of Ray Lewis' retirement, the rest of the NFL are now all breathing a sigh of relief. Ray Lewis is one of those players who you either love, or you don't. There is no middle ground on this feeling for good old Ray. I know quite a few Steeler fans who are celebrating after hearing this announcement. I'm sure that there are many of the other NFL team's fans who feel this same kind of jubilation, and joy.

Ray Lewis' presence on the field will certainly be missed by all the Baltimore Raven's fans, and it's going to be very hard to fill the void which he left behind if that's even at all possible. Hopefully he will have opportunity for some sort of defensive coaching position, or something along those lines for the team that he played his entire professional football career on. The Baltimore Ravens certainly don't want him on the other side!

Good luck Ray, and all of your fans thank you and wish you all of the happiness in your retirement. You Will Be Missed!