There's an old saying that goes "attitude reflects leadership," and that sums up the story of the Baltimore Ravens. The Ravens behind Ray Lewis have danced and talked their way into the playoffs since Joe Flacco came aboard, however, have found themselves on the short end of the stick. Following Saturday's loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers, Lewis typically deflected blame from himself and the defense for the loss, and while he may have a point, as the three turnovers by the Ravens offense during the third quarter totally turned the game around, Lewis' stance is a selfish one and one of convenience. Is it time to question the legacy of Lewis? Peyton Manning gets thrown under the bus for his postseason failures, but the fact remains, he has as many rings and Super Bowl MVPs and like Lewis is a surefire first ballot Hall of Famer. Is it time to bring the leadership of Lewis under the microscope? When the Ravens defeated the Giants in Super Bowl 35, that team was loaded with veteran leadership on both sides of the ball. Lewis was the most talented player on that team, however, he was surrounded by veterans like Rod Woodson and Michael McCrary on defense. Lewis at the time was under scrutiny for his alleged role in a murder in Atlanta the previous year, and it was Shannon Sharpe who infamously came to the aid of Lewis in the week leading to the Super Bowl, deflecting much of the criticism and pressure from the linebacker, which no doubt allowed him to go out that Sunday and have his MVP performance. I understand to Ravens fans and many NFL insiders, it may be sacrilege to question the legacy of Lewis but it seems fair to question whether his leadership has brought the right attitude to Baltimore.
Ray is a great leader. I would choose him over any single person on the defensive side of the ball in the NFL. To even question that is baffling.
ReplyDeleteOur offense is what needs leadership. Not bashing Flacco either. Cam needs to go. The play calling, especially in the second half of games this year was atrocious. But that is another topic.
Ray took much of the blame because of his hight level of play and his leadership role on the team. Although in my mind the defense played relatively well minus that one deep pass at the end of the game. Ray just has a great ego and pride that I would hate to lose in Baltimore, trying to keep some of the criticism off of the offense which is improving but still has much room to go.
That to me is what a leader is about.
Ray is a back stabber (no pun intended) and a hypocrite who probably cost his last coach his job. Remember when Ray called out Adalious Thomas for being a coward just because he said in an interview that in New England, there are no stars and everyone is treated equally? Ray went nuts over this because Adalious supposedly wasn't man enough to confront Ray directly (over what?). Then a weel later on his radio show Ray throws coach Billick under the bus - completely trashing the man behind his back - after the coach went out of his way to stand up for Ray during the double murder incident. We then heard Ray bad mouth Rex Ryan for no good reason. Now he throws the entire offense under the bus. And if I hear Ray say "my team" and "my defense" again (as opposed to "our") I think I might actually puke. Keeping him over Bart Scott was the biggest mistake of Ozzie's career. Get rid of the bum. Watch the film, he's lost it anyway.
ReplyDeleteWhoever wrote this article is a clueless, fucking idiot!
ReplyDeleteGlad to see there are a few guys who see Ray for who he really is, a punk. He was a very talented guy, but had no class at all. When I thnk of class, I think of Unitas and Payten Manning, definitely not Ray. Loved the comment about Bart Scot. And anyone who says Ray hasn't lost a step or 2 and is missing tackles is in serious denial.
ReplyDeleteHe has seen his better days for lack of speed.
ReplyDeleteHe is the heart & soul of the Ravens, however his statements about his defense does show that he has divided himself from the team concept. Time to think about retirement by the end of 2012.
rays comments come from a place of frustration. there were quite a few players on the team that DESERVED a shot at the superbowl! as the ravens have struggled over the years getting a productive offense in the works, the defense HAS carried the team, and its successes for the most part. when you show up every day and give 110% no matter what the outcome is, it gets a little frustrating when your unable to reep the benefits of your own work, of their own work. i get where hes coming from. i feel his frustration. he IS the heart of that team and has assumed a leadership role just by loving what he does and inspiring his team mates to love the game and respect the game as much as he does. that man lives and breathes the essence of football. i cant fault the man for wanting to place blame. should a player place blame? is that an anti team attitude, maybe. but i have never heard him speak out of line, or shout off untruths. when he has, on occasion blamed a paticular person, or entity-he's dead on accurate as to what issues need to be addressed. some times its not easy to hear truth about failure. the offense gave up how many 3rd quarter leads this season???
ReplyDeleteRex Ryan is without a doubt one of the greatest defensive minds to ever coach football. No one would ever argue that. But he chose Bart Scott to go along with him to the Jets, not Ray. That says it all. And when Ray was having his big embarassing hissy fit when his contract renewal came up, no other team made him a single offer. And even though I agree that our offense chokes during big games, especially Flacco, I didn't see "Ray's" defense doing anything other than allowing the other team to put points on the board, and look tired doing it, like they did all year. You can't coach someone not to choke, and when the big game is on the line, Flacco, Rice, the receivers, and "Ray's" defense just can't get it done. Statistics don't lie. Big Ben, Sanchez, Rodgers, Cutler, and their receivers all stepped up, even their no-name guys. What was Sanchez's rating? Like 127? And to blame our coaches is unfair. They weren't dropping passes, throwing interceptions, dropping snaps, and letting the other team score at will. The Ravens need to do some soul searching on both sides of the ball. It used to be defense, but now special teams is carrying them.
ReplyDeleteRay is a good mentor to younger players, but he does have this thing about deflecting blame to others. He played on a defense that gave up a 21-7 lead to the Steelers. There was fault on both sides of the ball, but if you're one of the best defenses in the league, you should overcome some offensive deficiencies
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