Clearly, there was less tread left on his tires after his 12th season and third contract in the NFL. At every turn, the Ravens were as respectful as any franchise could be in discussing the value of Ray Lewis and what it would mean for him and the franchise to walk the remaining steps in what had been a glorious lifetime marriage for them both through the first dozen years.
Ray Lewis found an embryo of a franchise in 1996. By January 2009, he had become the oak of the community, the most famous man in the state and a first-ballot Hall of Famer that every fan knew was obsessed with having one more chance to win a Super Bowl.
Had Lewis bought into rookie coach Harbaugh and rookie quarterback Flacco and the Ravens moving forward just weeks after losing in the AFC Championship game in Pittsburgh?
Rumors swirled. The Dallas Cowboys were interested. The New York Jets had just hired Rex Ryan as their new head coach. Could Ray Lewis be wearing No. 52 in green in the biggest city in the sports world? Is that the way it was going to end?
Bisciotti was the one person in charge to make sure that his open communication style was understood and reciprocated by Lewis. Bisciotti had developed a personal relationship with Lewis that saw them courtside together at Maryland basketball games, on the sidelines laughing like old pals and news spread of them spending time together in Florida where they both keep primary homes within a few hours of each other. Bisciotti felt like he and Ray Lewis had a trust and a responsibility to try to make the relationship continue until the end of his career.
Bisciotti always deferred to Newsome to put a price on the playing value of Ray Lewis, aging 32-year old middle linebacker. But what Bisciotti knew was that a player like Ray Lewis was only going to come along once in a generation – and only if the Ravens were lucky, that would happen in the way it did with Lewis who is the only star the Baltimore fan base has ever known. And this was this generation’s answer to Johnny Unitas or Cal Ripken – an iconic figure who was one decision away from playing the remaining days of his NFL road in a purple uniform and leaving the game with a far different legacy than becoming the latest mercenary or aging veteran to take a few dollars to move elsewhere.
“There’s always going to some owner out there who wants a player,” Bisciotti said. “If someone needs a player like Ray Lewis to provide leadership, it’s probably going to be a place that Ray Lewis doesn’t want to play, if that makes sense. You can’t buy leadership.
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“Ray’s either going to want to stay a Baltimore Raven or he’s not. We’re not going to be offering him less than anyone else. The money will be the same. But we won’t be irresponsible and worry about it 3 or 4 years from now. We’re either going to come to a good agreement or not. I want Ray to look at what he wants to do. I’m not going to sign him to six-year deal and he only wants to play two years and we eat dead money (against the salary cap). If he really wants to go, well, I just don’t see that happening.”
Bisciotti, at that point, reiterated a phrase that is simple in translation: “You don’t want people who don’t want to be here.”
In the end, Ray Lewis really did want to be in Baltimore. He sought counsel from everyone in his vast community and said he prayed for the right answer. And despite all of the rumors of New York and Dallas, Ray Lewis never visited any other city, never turned the negotiations into a circus and when the dust settled, he was on a dais with Bisciotti, Newsome, and Harbaugh signing a deal to remain the rest of his career with the Baltimore Ravens.
“I remember talking to Ray and talking extension during the (2008) season and I said to Ray, ‘You should wait. I want you to be happy.’” Bisciotti said. “I thought if we went 5-11 that Ray might go somewhere else. I’m happy we produced team that made him feel like he could win a championship here.”
Once again, Bisciotti managed to keep the top leadership person in his organization by retaining Ray Lewis. And once again, Newsome could also look Bisciotti in the eye and know that the Ravens still got a fair price for Lewis vs. the salary cap and his added value far outweighed parting ways.
Like most in the Ravens organization, Bisciotti marvels at Newsome’s almost savant-like ability to predict, obtain, and manage football talent over 17 years in Baltimore.
