NFL Gameday on NFLN jus reported that Jamal Lewis has announced that he will retire after the season.

Jamal, while an absolute beast for his first few years, burned out very abruptly after prison.

Best of luck in his post-football endeavors, and here's hoping that he leads a productive life.

he is tired of Cleveland I believe he has said in so many words. Here is a thread from the Cooler

http://mbd.scout.com/mb.aspx?s...7&t=5044140

too bad - a bad decision as a kid really haunted him.  I respect hiim but damn.. the browns jamal, you could have done so much better.  Maybe he could spend a year as Ray Rice's back up after Willis is gone?

Jamal had one he11 of an 03 season carried our whole offense

Single game rushing title should be his but Peterson is a beast

Am I the only one who thinks JLew was a better RB in his prime then AD is now?

I wish him nothing but the best of luck. he was always one of my favorite all time ravens. I really hope he signs a 1 day contract with us to retire a raven

Ravenatic20 wrote: the whole drug deal he was involved with is a huge character flaw and it's hard to look past.

I can look past that easily.

I can look past it because he didn't actually do anything. Nor was he convicted of doing anything.

In fact, the judge in the case who heard his guilty plea strongly recomended that he didn't make the plea, assuring Lewis that the prosecutor didn't have nearly enough evidence to obtain a conviction. But a trial would have gone into the following season, causing Lewis to miss part of that season. His plea deal was specifically set up to ensure that he'd be done with the law and be a free man before training camp. All he wanted to do was get back to the football field. The guilty plea was the fastest way for him to do that.

The 'evidence' against him was a taped cell phone conversation where an old aquaintence who was a nefarious character asked him if he wanted to take part in some drug deal. Lewis' response was a mumbled 'yeah'.

He never actually took part in any deals. And it's probable that he never even intended to. He may very well have been saying "yeah" to get the guy to shut up because he didn't feel like listening to him explain why Lewis should get in on this.

And I say that's probable because the deal in question was very small. And what's a guy making millions need with a few thousand bucks profit off a drug deal? Nothing. That's what.

When the judge in the case said "Dude, don't take this plea deal. You won't be convicted in a trial". That was all I needed to decide that Jamal wasn't the bad guy drug dealer the over zealous prosecutor made him out to be.

As for Jamal's future, Id like to think the Ravens did something to honor him next year. Bring him back for Jamal Lewis Day or something. He never wronged us.

He made a plea deal that sent him to prison that he didn't need to go to prison for, all to ensure that he'd be back in Baltimore for training camp, with a promise that he'd be taken care of in his next contract. The Ravens didn't take care of him in his next contract and he was justified in walking.

Should he go in our Ring of Honor?

- Key player in the Super Bowl run

- 2nd place all-time season rushing and OPOY that year

I'd say so.

No ring of honor for Jamal in my book.  Not after he admitted that he dogged it for an entire year because he was unhappy about his contract.  That's not ring of honor material - no honor in that.

ravensnhoos wrote:

Should he go in our Ring of Honor?

 

- Key player in the Super Bowl run

- 2nd place all-time season rushing and OPOY that year

 

I'd say so.

I think it's a toss up for Ring of Honor.

He was good for his time here. But was his time here as a dominant player long enough for Ring of Honor status? I think that's the real question.

He was here for 6 seasons. (7 if you count his inactive year) He was an unstopable beast in 2003. He was slightly above average for most of the other 5 seasons.

It's kind of like saying Brady Anderson deserves Oriole honors for his 1 really dominate home run year.

Of course on that note. Brady Anderson is in the O's HOF. So maybe that's answers the Jamal question right there.

Skip, I know he wasn't directly dealing drugs in this particular incident.  But when your name is mentioned in the same line as 'drugs' (illegal drugs), then its not a good sign.  I don't ever recall him saying he was innocent, either (maybe someone has a source?).  He did admit to being in the wrong crowd though.

ravensandhoos wrote:

No ring of honor for Jamal in my book. Not after he admitted that he dogged it for an entire year because he was unhappy about his contract. That's not ring of honor material - no honor in that.

Not only that but he blamed every one but himself when he wasnt running well and fumbling...That being said,if Ernest Byner is up there,you cant really make an agruement that he shouldnt be up there,too. I've always said as long as Byner is up there debating who should be there and who shouldn't  is pointless

blackraven wrote:

 

ravensandhoos wrote:

No ring of honor for Jamal in my book. Not after he admitted that he dogged it for an entire year because he was unhappy about his contract. That's not ring of honor material - no honor in that.

Not only that but he blamed every one but himself when he wasnt running well and fumbling...That being said,if Ernest Byner is up there,you cant really make an agruement that he shouldnt be up there,too. I've always said as long as Byner is up there debating who should be there and who shouldn't  is pointless

Yeah those are both good points.

I like Jamal. I think the Ravens didn't treat him as well as they should have after he needlessly went to prison in order to make sure he'd be at work on time the following season.

But he did cry about his lack of production and never accepted responcibility for it. And that does negate 'honor'.

The Ernest Byner thing befuddles me. But the Ring of Honor features the likes of John Unitas, John Odgen, and soon to be Ray Lewis.

If those guys are your standard, then Jamal doesn't belong. He was well above average and had 1 absolutely stallar season. But he's not on par with those other guys.

I do think he's good enough to have "Jamal Lewis" day where he's the ceremonial captain for the coin flip or something. But not Ring of Honor.

On a side note, speaking of the Ring of Honor, I'd like them to go to a more permanent display rather than the canvas drapings they put the names on now. Kind of like how Lambaue Field does it.

Imagine what Jamal does with Flacco as QB in his prime. I loved Jamal and wish him the best.

IN his prime, an absolute beast.  Go watch youtube vids of Jamal in college if you ever get bored.  Probably 15 pounds lighter with even more elusiveness and raw speed to go with that bruising power.  At his peak, Jamal was one of the best these eyes have ever had the joy of watching.  As good as he was, I still look at him at wasted talent.   With a few less smokes, and a better attitude and work ethic, he was a top 10 all time talent.

Reports are that Lewis will retire at the end of the year.  So, does he belong in the ring of honor?  I think he does, but maybe we should wait a few years first.

He was a major part of the Ravens superbowl victory.  He set a record for most yards in a game.  And for many years he was the Ravens offense.

On the negative side, he seemed to always complain.  He didn't get the ball enough, he got the ball too much.  Yada, yada, yada.  Then there were the later years when he tiptoed to the los and you knew what you were getting.  2-3 yards and a pile of players.  Finally, he didn't end his career with the Ravens.  He was a sure thing if he stuck around, but I think leaving took a bit away from him.

Still, overall I think his plusses outweigh his minusses and he belongs in the ring of honor after a few years go by.