Ravens Willing to Pay Ray Lewis

Since the Baltimore Ravens have been relevant, Ray Lewis has been the face of the squad. He pumps the team up, builds team morale and is what every team would want in a defensive leader.

He's also 33, with a ton of miles on his odometer. That doesn't seem to bother owner Steve Bisciotti or head coach John Harbaugh, who said they'd be willing to pay a large sum of money to keep Ray in the purple and black.

"Ray Lewis is going to be a guy we're going to pay a lot of money to in order to keep," Harbaugh said before coaching the AFC in Sunday's Pro Bowl. "Steve said he thinks we'll be willing to pay more than anybody else.

"I know Ray has to take a look around. But I'm definitely convinced that Ray wants to finish his career a Baltimore Raven. And there's no question the Baltimore Ravens definitely want Ray."

Bisciotti had previously said he'd hope Lewis would take a pay cut from the Ravens to keep the team together, to which Ray basically said "hell" and "no." With the Jets and Cowboys already showing interest in the linebacker, the Ravens will have to fork over a lot to keep Mr. Lewis happy and excited.

With quarterback Joe Flacco given a full off season with the offense and the same team returning, Baltimore could be a scary team in '09. Fans can only hope the face will stick around for one more year of big tackles and exciting celebrations.