Maybe if Ray Lewis gets bored doing television in his retirement, he can devote all his energies to the U.S. Olympic team.
If that’s the case, the United States might win every medal in every sport contested.
Because none other than Michael Phelps, the Baltimore-native who has become the most decorated Olympian of all time, said Lewis helped save his swimming career.
“What he did for me is the best thing in the world,” Phelps told Barry Svrluga of the Washington Post. “He helped me come back.”
Lewis could probably motivate a bowling ball to swim, but Phelps said that the Ravens linebacker was instrumental to getting back on track after he won eight gold medals at the 2008 Olympics in Beijing.
Phelps had been watching Lewis since he was a young boy (Lewis was drafted when Phelps was 11), and he said that talking to Lewis helped him push through some personal problems (which he did not describe in detail).
“We’ve talked about so much the last couple years of my career,” Phelps said. “He just helped me get through a lot of hard times, and I wouldn’t have been able to do it without him. He’s been telling me, ‘One more shot. We’re gonna have one more shot.’ And he did it. . . .
“He’s probably the only person who could really help me do that. He’s been through everything — the ups and downs — and he’s helped me literally overcome a lot of things that I’ve had in my life that have been tough, and he’s been there for me.”
Phelps has become a fixture on the Ravens’ sidelines, and was there for Lewis in the locker room after the AFC Championship Game, one Baltimore legend giving thanks to another.