Larry Brown Sports

Bill Walton had a night for the ages while he was calling the Pac-12 Tournament game between Washington and Oregon on Thursday night. Those who are familiar with Walton know that the NBA legend has never shied away from saying what’s on his mind and telling the truth. That was certainly the case on Thursday night while he was working for ESPN, and I’m sure the network has already spoken to him about some of his comments.

For starters, there was Walton’s bold remark about spending time in a limousine with Ray Lews:

As you may know, a limo had a lot to do with Lewis’ murder trial back in 2000. One witness who was riding in a limo with Lewis said she saw another passenger get out and dump a laundry bag, which many believe contained Lewis’ bloodstained white suite that was never recovered, into a garbage bin outside a fast food restaurant. Walton’s partner Dave Pasch quickly and uncomfortably changed the subject.

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When it comes to sports tattoos, it doesn’t get more realistic looking than this.

A guy named JD Baker shared a picture on Twitter of a Ray Lewis tattoo he got on his calf this week. Baker says he went to 15th Street Tattoo Studio in Edmond, Okla., for his work. As you can see, there is one shot of Lewis in pads, and another close-up of the former Baltimore Ravens linebacker’s face. At the bottom of the tattoo, it says “GOAT,” which is an acronym for “Greatest of All Time.”

Baker says he is going to get a tattoo of Deion Sanders on his leg next, and that he plans to make his entire leg a sleeve of tattoos with an NFL legends theme. Baker tells us he’s planning to add Drew Brees, and possibly a running back. It will be interesting to see who else makes the cut.

We have passed along a number of sports-related tattoos fans have gotten over the years. Some of them are pretty good, while others are pretty bad. This would definitely qualify as one of the good tattoos. It looks just like Lewis.

Photo credit: Twitter/JD Baker
H/T Darren Rovell

Ray Lewis has an unbridled enthusiasm for the game of football, and he is considered one of the best motivational speakers in sports. But the former Baltimore Ravens linebacker also has a tendency to go overboard with his speeches. His excessive show of emotion even led to him being mocked by the “Saturday Night Live” crew in January.

Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco even says Lewis’ speeches left him laughing at times.

“Oh, it’s funny,” Flacco told USA TODAY Sports on Saturday. “His speeches come from the heart, but there’s definitely times where I’m sitting there kind of chuckling to myself. It’s all good. There’s nobody that’s more passionate about what he does than that guy.

“So you just sit back and take it all in, but there’s times where he says some stuff and you’re like, ‘Man I don’t know what that meant, but I like how he said it.’”

When Flacco says Lewis’ speeches left him chuckling to himself, we’re sure he means that in an endearing way. As excessive as Lewis can be, his leadership inspired the Ravens. Terrell Suggs even said that Lewis’ retirement announcement helped spark the team’s Super Bowl run.

Flacco’s quote to USA Today came in the context of leadership for the Ravens. With Lewis on the team, Baltimore may have had the best leadership in the league for the past several seasons. Without him, others will need to emerge as team leaders. Flacco says that although he is not a vocal person, he will continue to lead through his play.

Even though we agree with Amani Toomer who says Lewis became a caricature of himself, we still have to credit the man for being an excellent speaker. If you haven’t seen them, you should watch this video of Lewis motivating Stanford’s basketball team last year, and this video of the moving eulogy Lewis delivered at Art Modell’s funeral.

When Ray Lewis announced that he would be retiring after the season, it instantly became the biggest story out of the Baltimore Ravens locker room and probably the entire NFL. Most of us grew tired of hearing about it. Lewis’ love for drama and hyperbole is exhausting to the average fan, but Terrell Suggs said it is one of the main reasons the Ravens won the Super Bowl.

During an appearance on NFL Network’s “Total Access” Friday, Suggs said that Baltimore would “probably not” have won the Super Bowl if not for Lewis announcing that 2012 would be his final season.

“You could say what sparked it was Ray’s announcement when he said that this would be his last playoff run with us,” Suggs said, via Pro Football Talk. “I would definitely say that was hands-down what sparked it and got our minds going in the right place.”

Suggs says the announcement helped the team focus. Of course, it is easy to say that now that the Ravens are the champs. Had they lost to the New England Patriots or San Francisco 49ers, my guess is you wouldn’t have trouble finding someone who believed Lewis’ announcement distracted the team.  If you remember, Torrey Smith was quick to remind the media that Lewis wasn’t the only guy going to the Super Bowl after Baltimore won the AFC Championship Game.

Nevertheless, the Ravens won the Super Bowl. Lewis got his fairytale ending and there’s no way you can say he distracted the team. Good for him, I guess.

Whether you like Ray Lewis or not, there is no denying he is one of the greatest middle linebackers to ever play in the NFL. His career numbers and accomplishments speak for themselves. Lewis has been to 13 Pro Bowls and has won two Super Bowls. When the Baltimore Ravens won it all in 2001, he was named Super Bowl MVP.

With all that in mind, you would assume there is no way the 17-year veteran was any more nervous than the average player heading into Super Bowl XLVII against the San Francisco 49ers. Former Ravens defensive end Trevor Pryce says that would be a poor assumption.

“I think he played with a case of the nerves,” Pryce told Jim Rome on Monday. “I think he had the yips. I really do.”

Pryce, who played four seasons alongside Lewis, said he has never seen anything like that from the future Hall of Famer. He also said he believes the emotions of the game became too much for Lewis to handle.

“He had it bad; he didn’t look like himself, even his new self,” Pryce said. “Forget his old self, that guy’s gone, that guy’s named Patrick Willis. But even the guy he was last week, he wasn’t that guy.  He had a case of it bad, badly. It was almost like he was just hoping let’s get this over with.

“Half of his playoff check should go to Dannell Ellerbe for making that last play on that last fade route. The other half to Greg Roman, the 49ers offensive coordinator.”

Lewis recorded only four total tackles in the Super Bowl, so it was certainly his least productive game of the postseason from a stats standpoint. That being said, I find it hard to believe that he would have been as nervous as Pryce insists he was. He got beat on a couple of plays, but that’s what happens when you’re 37 years old playing against guys in their prime. Maybe the whole deer antler spray fiasco rattled him more than we thought. Whatever the case, he’s still a two-time Super Bowl champion who gets to go out on top.

Audio of Pryce’s interview can be heard here.

H/T Game On!
Photo credit: Evan Habeeb-US PRESSWIRE

Ray Lewis was in great spirits after winning the Super Bowl on Sunday night. He and the rest of the Baltimore Ravens celebrated their win, and he even took some time to show singer Mary J. Blige how to do his famous squirrel dance.

The impromptu dance session reportedly took place during the team’s Super Bowl party, for which Jay-Z even made an appearance.

Lewis has been doing the dance during introductions before games for most of his career. Other players have often tried to replicate it, but it’s not quite the same as Ray doing it. He even upset Indianapolis Colts wide receiver Reggie Wayne earlier in the postseason by doing the dance at the end of the game to celebrate a win.

Lewis’ constant preaching has become a nuisance over the past few months, but I will say that I’ll miss his dance.

Photo credit: Twitter/Mary J. Blige

Ray Lewis closed out his storied NFL career with his second career Super Bowl victory. He was exposed in the passing game by 49ers tight end Vernon Davis, who ran past him for several catches. He did not make spectacular plays on the field, but he provided inspiration for Baltimore throughout the team’s Super Bowl run.

After the 34-31 win, Lewis was invited to speak on CBS’ podium where he thanked God for the victory.

“It’s simple: when God is for you, who can be against you?” Lewis responded when asked how to describe being a champion. “It’s no greater way as a champ to go out on your last ride with the men that I went out with.”

Lewis was also gripping the microphone the entire time as if he wanted to hijack the postgame show, but Jim Nantz wouldn’t allow it.

I don’t mind Lewis expressing his faith on the stage, but I don’t like his implication that God favors the Ravens over the 49ers. Do they not pray in San Francisco?