Baltimore Ravens

 

Baltimore has long been known for their great defense. In 2000, the Ravens had one of the best defenses in NFL history. Some major Ravens defenders include middle linebacker Ray Lewis, outside linebacker/defensive end Terrell Suggs, defensive tackle Haloti Ngata, cornerback Chris McAlister, outside linebacker Peter Boulware, cornerback Lardarius Webb, defensive tackle Tony Siragusa, and defensive back Rod Woodson. Several Ravens defensive coodinators (Marvin Lewis, Mike Nolan, Rex Ryan, and Chuck Pagano) have gone to be NFL head coaches.

 

The offense has been considered mediocre. The Ravens have had many different quarterbacks, including Trent Dilfer, Vinny Testaverde, Kyle Boller, and Joe Flacco, with limited success. The Ravens have gotten good results from players like Todd Heap, Derrick Mason, Flacco, Jamal Lewis, and some others on offense.

The Ravens special teams has also been praised. Notable players include kicker Justin Tucker, punter Sam Koch, and returner Jermaine Lewis.

In 1996, the Ravens' logo had a seal with a "B" for Baltimore. That logo was featured on the Ravens' helmets. In 1999, the logo changed to the head a purple Raven with the Baltimore B. That has been on team helmets since.

The Baltimore Ravens uniform combinations are: purple jersey and white pants (standard, introduced in 1999), white jersey with white pants (introduced in 1996, often worn for away games), white jersey with black pants (introduced in 2008, often worn in away games and at the season-home opener), purple jersey and black pants (alternate, 'not often worn,' introduced in 1996), black jerseys and white pants (alternate, introduced in 2008), and black jersey and black pants (alternate, introduced in 2004). Purple jerseys are most often worn during day-time home games. The black jerseys are worn only at home games, usually games that are played at night. The white jersey combinations are worn at most away games. However, the black pants and white jersey combination is usually worn by the Ravens for their first home game of every season. That tradition was started under head coach John Harbaugh in 2008.

See main articles: Memorial Stadium (Baltimore) and M&T Bank Stadium.

The Ravens played their first two seasons in Memorial Stadium, where the Baltimore Orioles Major League Baseball team and the Baltimore Colts played. Before the 1998 season, the Ravens moved to what is now M&T Bank Stadium. The stadium was called "PSI Net Stadium" up until 2001 when the PSI Net company went bankrupt. The stadium was referred to as "Ravens Stadium" in 2002. Many fans signed a letter asking that the Ravens officials name the stadium "Johnny Unitas Stadium" after Baltimore Colts Hall of Fame quarterback Johnny Unitas. The request was unsuccessful. Before the 2003 season, the Ravens, Maryland Stadium Authority, and M&T Bank signed a long term contract for the stadium to be called "M&T Bank Stadium." The stadium's official holding is listed at 71,008 people, but can hold more.

The official headquarters of the Baltimore Ravens (commonly referred to as "The Castle," or "Baltimore Ravens Training Complex') is located in Owings Mills, Maryland, USA.

See also: http://www.baltimoreravens.com/News/History/Ring_of_Honor.aspx Archived 2012-02-02 at the Wayback Machine

The Ravens induct personnel that they feel meat up to set standards on and off the field into the team Ring of Honor (presented by Smyth Jewlers).

The current Baltimore Ravens Ring of Honor:

Baltimore Colts honored: QB #19 Johnny Unitas, RB #24 Lenny Moore, OT #70 Art Donovan, DE #89 Geno Marchitti, WR #84 Reymond Berry, TE #88 John Mackey, and DE #83 Ted Hendricks (Inducted 2002)

• Runningback and runningbacks coach Earnest Byner (Inducted 2001)
• Owner Art Modell (Inducted 2003)
• Defensive end Michael McCrary (Inducted 2004)
• Outside Linebacker Peter Boulware (Inducted 2006)
• Offensive tackle Jonathan Ogden (Inducted 2008)
• Kicker Matt Stover (Inducted 2011)
• Running back Jamal Lewis (inducted 2012)
• Linebacker Ray Lewis (inducted 2013)

The Baltimore Colts played in Baltimore from 1953 to 1984. In 1995, Cleveland Browns owner Art Modell announced that his struggling team could no longer compete financially or on the field. He then announced a highly criticized move to go to Baltimore.^[1] In 1996, the Ravens drafted future stars Jonathan Ogden, Ray Lewis, and Jermaine Lewis. Four years later, head coach Brian Billick led the Ravens to a 34-7 Super Bowl XXXV victory over the New York Giants. The next few years were filled with mediocrity. In 2004, Baltimore businessman Steve Bisciotti bought the team from Modell.^[2] The Ravens fired Billick in 2007 after a 5-11 season and replaced him with John Harbaugh, who got the Ravens to the playoffs through the next four years.^[3][4]

• Ted Marchibroda (1996-1998) Win-Loss record: 16-31-1
• Brian Billick (1999-2007) Win-Loss record: 80-64
• John Harbaugh (2008-Present) Win-Loss record: 158-104

• Baltimore Ravens official web site
• Sports E-Cyclopedia.com