Linebacker Terrell Suggs, the Ravens’ record-holder in career sacks and the player whose swagger helped define its defense for more than a decade, will enter the Ravens Ring of Honor this fall, the team announced Aug. 24.
Suggs will be formally inducted on Oct. 22 when the Ravens host the Detroit Lions.
“[I] couldn’t be more happy for him,” head coach John Harbaugh said after practice Aug. 24. “Nobody is more deserving. Obviously, that was a no-brainer, right? And what he meant to this organization and to our team and to our defense. … I’m just personally very grateful for Terrell Suggs and what he’s done for the Ravens.”
In a video announcing the selection, former Ravens general manager Ozzie Newsome said, “You were a prime example of what it means to ‘Play like a Raven.’ For 16 seasons, it was a joy watching you perform in the purple and black. Through your leadership, dedication and dominance, you helped elevate our standard.”
“The entire Ravens flock cannot wait to celebrate your achievements, and the everlasting impact you made on our franchise and Baltimore,” Newsome added.
Suggs spent 16 seasons in Baltimore after the Ravens made him their first pick in the 2003 draft (No. 10 overall) out of Arizona State. He was the Associated Press Defensive Rookie of the Year that season after he recorded 12 sacks, and he was named the AP Defensive Player of the Year in 2011, when he recorded 14 sacks and led the league with seven forced fumbles.
In 2012, Suggs missed the first six games while recovering from a torn Achilles, then returned to play in eight games as the Ravens won their second Super Bowl title. He was named to the Pro Bowl seven times.
Suggs played in 229 regular-season games for the Ravens, which broke the franchise record of 228 set by Hall of Fame linebacker Ray Lewis. (Suggs’ mark has since been broken by punter Sam Koch.)
Suggs totaled 132.5 sacks for the Ravens — nearly twice as many as anyone else. (Peter Boulware ranks second with 70.) He also holds the franchise record for forced fumbles and ranks second behind Lewis in career tackles.
Suggs left the Ravens as a free agent in 2019 and joined his hometown Arizona Cardinals. He was waived late in the season and signed on with the Kansas City, and Suggs went on to earn his second Super Bowl ring with the Chiefs.
Suggs ended his career with 139 sacks, 12th most in league history. Everyone ahead of him on that list who is eligible is in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. (Julius Peppers, who ranks fifth, is not yet eligible for induction.)
Loud and proud, Suggs was a classic villain in the heated Ravens-Steelers rivalry. He leveled some tenacious hits on Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger and others, and he soaked up the verbal taunts heaped on him when the Ravens visited Heinz Field. Many younger players said Suggs would tell them, “You aren’t really a Raven until you’ve beaten the Steelers.”
He was one of the team’s liveliest characters, at various points showing up for game day introductions wearing a gladiator mask or riding owner Steve Bisciotti’s golf cart from the locker room to the practice field at the team facility. One day, as he saw media surrounding kicker Justin Tucker in the locker room, Suggs bellowed, “Come on, man! He’s just a damn kicker!”
Suggs’ induction will mark the third straight year the team has added to the Ring of Honor. Marshal Yanda was inducted last year, and Haloti Ngata in 2021. Suggs will become the 14th Raven inducted, including late owner Art Modell and former head coach Brian Billick. The Ring of Honor also includes a group of eight Baltimore Colts in the Pro Football Hall of Fame who were inducted together in 2002.
See Also: Ravens’ Terrell Suggs: Still Sizzlin’ (Sept. 2018)
Photo Credit: Kenya Allen/PressBox