What Terrell Suggs Means to the Ravens
Terrell Suggs has taken some heat for not attending some of the Baltimore Ravens voluntary workouts this offseason. The outside linebacker insists that he’ll report to training camp in good shape and is excited for the 2010 season.
Suggs is a vital part of the Ravens long-time feared defence. With future hall-of-fame MLB Ray Lewis aging and safety Ed Reed battling injury problems, Suggs is a staple of the defence. The Ravens have applied the franchise tag on him twice, and just last season signed him to an expensive long-term deal, which Suggs has proven to be worth.
The linebacker was drafted by the Ravens 10th overall in the 2003 NFL Draft out of Arizona State University.
In his college career, Suggs played as a defensive end and etched his name into the NCAA record books. He finished his career in Arizona with 163 tackles, including a school record 65.5 tackles for a loss.
Perhaps his most impressive stat was setting an NCAA career record with 44 sacks. He also piled on 14 forced fumbles, three fumble recoveries, two interceptions and nine passes defended.
In his professional career, Suggs has developed a reputation as one of the best linebackers in the game and has an ability of stripping the ball from the hands of ball-carriers. He also creates turnovers for his defence.
Suggs made an immediate impact in his professional career. He won the Defensive Rookie of the Year award in which he recorded 12 sacks and one interception.
In 2004, Suggs enjoyed perhaps his best season as he recorded 60 tackles and added on 10.5 sacks. Suggs was elected to his first Pro Bowl that season as well.
The next season, defensive coordinator Mike Nolan left for San Francisco and Rex Ryan was named the new defensive coordinator. Ryan moved Suggs to the defensive end position where he continued to shine. Suggs recorded a career-low eight sacks, but he added two interceptions as he got used to his new position.
Suggs’ next season saw the Ravens become the number one defence in football, allowing just 12.7 points per game. Suggs recorded 9.5 sacks and piled on 46 tackles.
Suggs recorded a career high 68 tackles, 53 solo in 2008 and scored his first touchdown, coming off an interception from Chad Pennington. Suggs would go on to return another INT for a touchdown and recorded eight sacks. His performances helped the Ravens reach the AFC Championship game, where they eventually lost to the Pittsburgh Steelers.
This past season, Suggs battled some injuries but still managed to record 59 total tackles and 4.5 sacks.
Now Suggs heads into the 2010 season as one of the Ravens most important players. The team has addressed its needs of offensive improvement as they acquired wide receiver (WR) Anquan Boldin. Joe Flacco is also expected to have a breakout season in his third year as the team’s quarterback.
That doesn’t mean there’s any room for the defence to slack off. They must retain their reputation as one of the league’s smash-mouth defenses and continue to dominate football games. If they can combine that with an increased production from the offence, the Ravens can be a legitimate Super Bowl contender this season.
Suggs will have to be the anchor of the defence as Ray Lewis isn’t getting any younger. While Lewis still provides invaluable leadership to the team, his stats have declined the past few seasons as he enters his 15th NFL season. Suggs will probably be passed the torch as the leader of that defence and perhaps no other Raven may mean more to the team than Suggs in the next few years.
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