Baltimore Ravens all-time Mount Rushmore

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BALTIMORE, MD – DECEMBER 10: Ray Lewis #52 of the Baltimore Ravens in action against the San Diego Chargers during an NFL football game December 10, 2000, at PSINet Stadium in Baltimore, Maryland. Lewis played for the Ravens from 1996-2012. (Photo by Focus on Sport/Getty Images) /

MLB Ray Lewis (1996-2012)

We mentioned earlier that the Ravens set the tone for their tenure in Baltimore with their first two draft picks in 1996. Jonathan Ogden was the easier choice at no. 4, but Ray Lewis wasn’t as easy a choice for GM Ozzie Newsome to make.

Lewis was a highly productive linebacker at Miami, but he fell on draft boards due to concerns over his size. Baltimore wasn’t deterred, taking Lewis with the 26th pick, and they ended up with one of the greatest middle linebackers football has ever seen.

Lewis has enough awards to fill a small gallery, winning the NFL’s Defensive Player of the Year award twice, making 13 Pro Bowl appearances and 10 All-Pro teams, and most importantly for Baltimore, two Super Bowl titles. The Ravens got a Super Bowl MVP-winning performance out of Lewis in 2000 and capped his career with a second title in 2012.

That victory over the 49ers in New Orleans proved to be the final game of Lewis’ brilliant career, which has since been capped by a Hall-of-Fame induction and a spot on the NFL’s 100th-Anniversary team. Lewis is, without question, the greatest Raven ever and the true face of Baltimore’s Mount Rushmore.

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