Ray Lewis doesn't understand Ravens' reaction to leadership comments

Jarrett Bell | USA TODAY Sports

Ray Lewis does not understand the fuss.

Yet with several of his former Baltimore Ravens teammates reacting strongly to the retired linebacker's assertion that the team needs to address a leadership void, the new ESPN analyst clearly has a sense of how his words can still strike a nerve.

"I'm totally confused with how someone can take something and make more of it, when what I was saying was so general," Lewis told USA TODAY Sports.

"If anybody takes offense to that, I don't get it. What did I say that was so bad?"

Lewis addressed the state of the Ravens' leadership on ESPN on Monday after a TMZ report maintained that wide receiver Jacoby Jones was hit in the head with a champagne bottle by a stripper while riding on a party bus used as part of a birthday celebration for tackle Bryant McKinnie.

As he'd stated previously, Lewis said Monday the Ravens must fill a leadership vacuum given his retirement after 17 seasons and the decision to let longtime free safety Ed Reed depart via free agency.

Lewis never addressed the Jones incident specifically, but his comments were interpreted by some as an insinuation that the incident might have been avoided with stronger leadership.

And with the remarks coming from Lewis, they undoubtedly carried tremendous weight.

"In any locker room and team situation, that's what we do: We help each other out," Lewis said. "I don't see how anybody can misunderstand that.

"I don't know anything about the incident. I wasn't there. How can I speak about that? That's not just about the Baltimore Ravens, that's with any team. The most important thing is not talent. It's leadership. And I'm not talking about the coaches. It's leadership with the players."

The reaction from several players seemed to demonstrate that the Ravens still possess leadership — although there is certainly a transition.

Lewis, who was inducted into the team's Ring of Honor at halftime of Sunday's victory against Reed and the Houston Texans, was the face of the franchise for essentially all of his 17 seasons.

Still, wideout Torrey Smith told The Baltimore Sun that questioning the team's leadership after the Jones incident was a case of "overreacting."

Quarterback Joe Flacco, the Super Bowl XLVII MVP, told reporters on Wednesday: "Ray knows better than that. Things happen. We're usually a pretty good team with stuff like that. If you look around the league, there's a lot of leadership problems then. Like I said, Ray knows better."

Lewis said his cell phone was blowing up with text messages Wednesday.

"It's like, 'How can you attack your team?' " Lewis said of the gist of the messages.

"I'm the biggest Baltimore Ravens fan there is. When I speak, I bring the locker room perspective. I don't understand. Who did I attack? I know I said it from Day 1, and this is true in any locker room, the leadership from the players is what makes a good team. ... When you have an issue, a leader will find out what's going on and how to best handle it for the benefit of the team. That's how teams operate."

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Lewis was in Baltimore on Wednesday and originally expected to remain throughout the week. He said that he is re-arranging his schedule, though, in order to visit a 13-year-old cancer patient in Florida.

"Sometimes, we think about the most shallow things in life," he said, referring to the feedback from his ex-mates. ''It's amazing that some of the things that are real-life issues, like this kid fighting for his life, are going on, and we're talking about something that is so mediocre. You've got to keep it in perspective."

Lewis wanted to make another point clear: He still considers himself a Raven.

"If people are sensitive about me talking about my team and my city, then they should know that the last thing I'm going to do is misrepresent about my brand," he said, adding that he's grateful for the impact that the late club founder, Art Modell, current owner Steve Bisciotti and general manager Ozzie Newsome have had on him.

"I'm connected to them forever."

In his new ESPN role, he gets to prove that on a weekly basis in the segment where panelists project the winners.

"I've already told them I'm biased," he said. "I'm a Raven for life. You can put me down for picking the Ravens to win every week. Get over it."

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Follow Jarrett Bell on Twitter @JarrettBell