Ray Lewis is Good not Great Anymore

Raven Linebacker Ray Lewis

Baltimore head coach, John Harbaugh, has come out and stated that Ray Lewis is the greatest middle linebacker in NFL history and still the best in the league today, which means they will not be shopping for an heir apparent at the draft this year.  I for one can't blame a coach for backing his guy and talking him up in the process, or for that matter I won't even argue his comment about Lewis being the best ever.  To be honest, he is easily in the conversation and I wouldn't argue too much against it.  Now, not preparing for the inevitable departure of Lewis is something I would like to argue.  I will spare you the suspense and tell you he is not the best linebacker out there right now, I am not even sure he is still in the top 5.  Much like Brian Urlacher, who I also don't feel is as good as the credit he gets, they are great leaders and have high football IQ's, which keep them playing at a higher level than their talent warrants.  Lewis has lost a few steps, I do mean plural, and he seems to miss more tackles than we are accustomed to seeing from him.  To his credit, he still does come up with big plays fairly often and he is a great leader.  That will only get you so far and times are a changing.  My advice to Mr. Harbaugh is if you want to get to the next level you will need to make some tough choices and Ray Lewis knows that.  It is time to start worrying about your team and not the mental state of your veterans.