According to a Sports Illustrated article hitting the shelves as we speak, Ray Lewis bought and used a banned substance, IGF-1 (found in deer antler velvet), to facilitate his recovery from his torn triceps muscle. He ordered it from a company called SWATS (Sports With Alternatives to Steroids). Here’s the recorded convo :
“Spray on my elbow every two hours?” Lewis asked.
“No, under your tongue” says the SWATS guy.
“OK, just pile me up and just send me everything you got, because I got to get back on this this week” Lewis says.
Timing is everything I suppose. This story broke minutes before media day for the Ravens, and is made media day a whole lot more interesting. When asked about the deer antler spray, Lewis left with a “next question.” John Harbaugh and Ozzie Newsome were asked about this as well, and their answer was basically Lewis hasn’t been caught, so he isn’t using any banned substances.
Wouldn’t it be poetic justice if Ray Lewis was suspended from his last game? The fricking Super Bowl? I’m sure somone in the media throng brings up 13 years ago. He’s apparently not talking about that either. I don’t think Goodell has the stones to suspend him, however.
Forty Niners Forever 
Trade him to buffalo. I don’t want him in the division, to much history.
Whatever happens with Smith it can’t be as painful as watching the media mob him today. Dude has been through enough humiliation for a few lifetimes.
+1.
And Smith didn’t even get a podium to stand on. That’s reserved for starters.
I just hope Ray Lewis walks off the field Sunday without another Ring.
Frank deserves his first before Ray deserves a 2nd.
Totally tired of all the GodSpeak from a guy who obstructed justice in a double homicide.
Great football career, dumbest effn football dance known to mankind, best wishes and please lose on Sunday.
Amen, brother . . .
Don’t really care who wins but I totally agree with you on wanting to see Gore get a ring before RayRay. If anyone deserves a ring it’s Gore and Vernon. That being said, I really don’t want to see Randy Moss’s smug ass get a ring.
A lot has changed (talking about the media) in 18 years since our last SB appearance. I have never spent as much time as I have in the last week paying attention to them and they are in a fucking feeding frenzy. I love football, I love the Niners, but watching this level of obsession is really kind of bizarre. But it is, what it is.
Alex Smith continues to handle himself with utter class. You can also see the respect (of him as a man, not necessarily about how he is as a qb) in how other players talk about him. All my years as a Smith “doubter” will never detract from the fact that I truly respect him as a person. He has handled everything thrown at him with dignity, and integrity. Whatever I think of his skills is in the long term irrelevant to that.
As a “fan” I want what is best for my team, but I also believe that if they release him, w/o any draft picks, then what is “best” for the team and for Smith are not necessarily mutually exclusive.
Good post BF –
I actually think the Roster Bonus in March is a parting gift to Alex as well as the window of opportunity to recoup Trade value.
Either way, I agree, he’s always been a stand up guy.
A trade isn’t a ‘bad’ deal for Alex either. Some team gets a dependable game manager with journeyman experience for a reasonable price picking up his remaining year and he gets a cool $1M from us walking around money.
If he performs as well as most here seem to think he will he’ll get re-upped on a three year deal for good money or get offered more in FA the following year.
I wouldn’t bet on him finding such a QB friendly environment as he has here myself, but that’s just me. I’m continually amazed at how much sympathy this guy engenders. Whatever it is about him that creates that has much bigger earning potential in the market place than his quarterbacking abilities.
It’s a marketing blitz now NoFear49er.
Harbaugh has put Alex in the winners circle at the perfect time.
No QBs coming out in the Draft worth clamoring over and, few on the FA Market horizon that offer much competition at a reasonable price.
Just hope Baalke can land us a pick or 2 for our troubles.
As many of us suspected, Alex has probably hit his ceiling.
He’s a stand up guy, shouldn’t be hard to obtain some interest.
Atlanta did well with their deal for Schaub, hope we can have similar success.
He’s still better prepared than Sanchez, Weeden, and others out there currently holding starting jobs.
He’s gotten ahead of Romo too in terms of Playoff success.
For that matter, Kaep has too.
There’s a difference between sympathy and respect, but I’m not sure if you were referring in any way to my post above. I am not against a trade and can see a situation where it could work out. I get that it’s a biz, but I also get the sense that the 49er org if they do trade him, will not do so to a team he doesn’t want to go to. Or they’ll release him.
Yup, that’s what I think as well. The org knows how they fucked him over during his time here, but they also realize they’ve filled his bank account for 3 generations. They’ll send him somewhere he’s cool with or releae him.
It would be cool if the Raiders could snag him but they have absolutely nothing to offer for him at this point….they need every draft pick they can get. So it’s Palmer/Pryor for next year….GAG!
Damm are 1st SB injury.Ahmad.Brooks has a grade 1 shoulder sprain.It was on the same play he nailed Matt Ryan with his own dislocated shoulder in the NFC title game.He.will play though,nothin is keeping me out of this game.He.also has a dislocated finger,he suffered early in the season.
Didn’t hear that, AK. At least he’s had some time to rest.
New thread is up.
Sham, i never got the Pryor signing. I can see taking a shot on palmer, although they overpaid an insane amount for him.