Ed Reed is now an inductee of the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Now, we’re getting sentimental. Here are the top moments from Ed Reed’s storied career presented by the Ebony Bird Round Table:
Chris Schisler’s favorite moment:
I think I may be one of the luckiest Ravens fans of all-time because I was there both times Ed Reed broke the interception return record. In 2004, the Ravens were playing the Browns. It was the day before my 14th birthday and my parents got me tickets to the game despite it being a school night. The game came down to the wire and then Ed Reed caught a tipped pass in the end zone and ran it 106 yards back for the game ending touchdown.
What I remember so vividly is the crowd erupting. I didn’t see Reed catch the ball. All I saw was Reed flying down the sideline and a stadium going off the hook. It was a truly incredible moment, and if I could have bottled that feeling up, I’d be rich. The play had nothing to do with my birthday, yet being there at that moment was a special way to celebrate.
The best thing about that 2004 interception return was how once Reed got the ball, there was nobody who could have caught him. He flied down the sideline and the entire stadium saw it. I’ve heard M&T Bank stadium get pretty loud. The loudest moments were usually spurred on by something incredible that Reed did.
Then in 2008, I was at the game against the Eagles. Reed broke the record with a 107 yard interception return. It looked like Reed would have been stopped on his return, but he eluded all the Eagles on his way to the history making score. It’s very rare that you are at the stadium when one of your favorite players breaks a record. It’s even more rare to be at the stadium both times one of your favorite players breaks the same record. I am one of the luckiest fans in all of the Ravens Flock.
Richard Bradshaw’s favorite moment:
For such a remarkable career, how can we overlook the greatest moment in Ed Reed’s 12-year NFL stint without mentioning his Super Bowl XLVII championship?
The greatest ball hawk in NFL history appeared to be destined to become another great player to end his career without a championship ring. Reed would join the likes of Dan Marino and Tony Gonzalez as some of the best of their positions to never win the big-game. Reed was close many of times, appearing in two AFC championships games in 2008 and 2011. Unfortunately, Baltimore lost both in heartbreaking fashion.
Canes Warning
The 2012 AFC Championship game had a different feel to it, however. The Ravens emerged victorious over the New England Patriots after suffering a brutal defeat one year prior. The whole 2012 playoff run for Baltimore felt different, but the AFC Championship win was special.
Once in the Super Bowl, the big-game felt small for the Ravens. For Ed Reed, it was just another game, as he picked off San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick to set the tone for the game. Reed was always known as a ball-hawk, but this pick felt the most special.
When the dust settled and the Ravens ended the game at the top, it felt incredibly special for many. Obviously, it was Ray Lewis’ send off, but it felt even more memorable to see Ed Reed hoist up the Lombardi trophy in the ultimate victory of his career.
It brought a tear to my eye as well as all of Ravens Flock, but it was truly incredibly to see the greatest safety of all-time relish in the greatest victory possible.
Ian Schultz’s favorite moment
My favorite Ed Reed moment was on December 7th, 2008 as the Ravens were taking on the Washington Redskins in a home night game. The Redskins were 7-5 and the Ravens were 8-4 in Joe Flacco’s rookie season at the time of the game. There were 20mph winds that night and the wind chill had the temperature at 12 degrees overall.
I thought the main thing I was going to take away from the game was how cold it was until Ed Reed took over the game on the first handful of series of the game. The Redskins were at their own 40 yard line looking to put points on the board before Reed picked off a Jason Campbell pass and returned it to around midfield. Five plays later it was 7-0 Baltimore.
Reed wasn’t done though. After the teams traded punts, Clinton Portis took a hand-off and went 11 yards to the Redskins 22 before Reed knocked the ball loose, scooped it up and took it to the house giving the Ravens a 14-0 lead less than six minutes into the game. The Redskins challenged but to no avail. The Bank was rocking like it always was back then and Ed had essentially put the game away early.
Just for good measure, Ed iced the game late in the 4th quarter with the Ravens leading 24-10 with roughly two minutes to go in the game when picked off Campbell again at midfield. There aren’t many times that a defender comes up with three turnovers in a game but it became common place for Ed to so.
Reed also pitched in four more picks over the last two games of the season giving him seven turnovers forced in a span of four weeks. He would also pick off two passes in the Ravens playoff opener that year in Miami. This guy was absolutely ridiculous.
Garrett Ferguson’s favorite moment:
On Thanksgiving 2011, the Baltimore Ravens played the San Francisco 49ers in a primetime matchup that changed my life. I wasn’t a Ravens fan or even a football fan at the time, yet my entire family was full of 49er fans and they made me watch the game with them. Due to the fact I never watched football, I wanted to play devils advocate and root for the Ravens because it annoyed my family and the Ravens were wearing their all black alternate jerseys so it was hard not to root for them. The Ravens ended up winning the defensive game and that’s where my interest in the Ravens was sparked.
Fast forward to January 15th, 2012 the Ravens were playing the Houston Texans in the AFC Divisional Round but the only problem was I couldn’t watch the game because I had a soccer tournament at the same time. As soon as my last game was over I checked my phone and saw the playoff game was still going so I made my dad rush me to the nearest sports bar to catch the tail end of the game.
As soon as we got there I noticed the place was packed with Texans fans so me being a new fan, felt a little intimidated. Then with around 2 minutes left in the one score game Texans quarterback T. J. Yates launches the ball to the corner of the end zone targeting Andre Johnson and as I hold my breath I see Ed Reed zoom by and intercept the ball while falling backwards into the end zone. I started screaming, my dad started cheering, and the rest of the restaurant was quiet. That was the moment I knew I found my team.
This moment will forever be one of my favorite memories and the person I have to thank for launching my Ravens fandom is Ed Reed. I was very new to football so who knows if I would’ve become the fan I am today if Reed didn’t intercept that ball. It just goes to show that Ed Reed’s impact was felt far from just on the field, he has made so many young kids like myself fall in love with not just the game, but the Baltimore Ravens.
Darin McCann’s favorite moment:
Trying to pin down a favorite Ed Reed moment is like trying to… you know what? It’s not like anything else. There’s only one Ed Reed.
As we watch Reed soak in the praise of the football world this weekend with his induction into the Pro Football Hall of Fame, I think back of watching that purple blur streaking across the field, snatching a pick without breaking stride and taking it to the house. I remember the laterals, the head games with opposing quarterbacks and the jaw-dropping blocks on special teams during his early years.
But, strangely, it was a regular season game in 2008 that sticks in my head as the moment I realized in my heart just how unique and dominant he was.
The Dallas Cowboys were closing out the legendary Texas Stadium with a Dec. 20 game against the Ravens. Coming from the mind of a typical “the-entire-NFL-hates-the- Ravens” fan, it seemed like the Cowboys and national media was treating this like a rock star’s party, where the Ravens were being served up as the ceremonial meal for Jerry Jones and his almighty “America’s Team.”
The Ravens won that game 33-24, by the way, and made it to the AFC Championship game that season.
For many, the strongest memories for Ravens fans concerning this game were three runs — a 9-yard run by punter Sam Koch on a fake punt, a 77-yarder by Willis McGahee and an 82-yard “scamper” by LeRon McClain. But there were two first-half plays involving Reed that cemented him as a future Hall-of-Famer to me. For whatever that’s worth.
Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo launched a deep pass that floated high into the sky, and all I could think was, “Ed’s going to pick that.” He did.
Later in the half, Romo tried another deep, floating pass downfield, to the opposite side. Once it left his hand, I stood up and said, “Ed Reed.” Reed picked that one, too.
When you know one man owns a certain part of the field, against the greatest players on the face of the earth, you know that one man is special. You know he’s a Hall-of-Famer.
That’s Ed Reed.