Joe Flacco laughed at Ray Lewis’ pregame antics

During the Baltimore Ravens' Super Bowl run this season, much of the focus was on Ravens inside linebacker Ray Lewis and his pregame speeches and dancing that motivated the team all the way to the Lombardi Trophy (or something like that). However, despite Lewis' exuberance, one Ravens player didn't react like the rest of the team did. Quarterback Joe Flacco actually was amused by Lewis and his pregame shenanigans. Flacco explained in an interview with USA Today:

"Oh, it's funny," Ravens quarterback and Super Bowl MVP Joe Flacco told USA TODAY Sports at a charity event Saturday. "His speeches come from the heart, but there's definitely times where I'm sitting there kind of chuckling to myself. It's all good. There's nobody that's more passionate about what he does than that guy."

"So you just sit back and take it all in, but there's times where he says some stuff and you're like, 'Man I don't know what that meant, but I like how he said it.'"

Lewis, who joined ESPN after Baltimore's season ended, has motivated the team and entertained Ravens fans with his emotional, inspiring speeches before games in recent years. During Baltimore's playoff run this year and Lewis announcement that he'd retire following the season, those speeches (and his dances) got a lot more attention than they had in recent years.

This brings up an interesting question, though: with Lewis now a member of the multi-headed monster of ESPN NFL analysts, are we going to react the same way to him on national TV like Flacco reacted to him on the sidelines? I don't think Lewis is exactly going to be talking about the heart of a warrior, and so on and so forth while breaking down plays for ESPN, but you never know with him. I think there's a solid possibility for Lewis to be one of the most bizarre analysts ESPN has ever had, due to his extremely charismatic personality and his incredible knowledge of the game. However, the moment he starts trying to use hyperbole when breaking things down is the moment where his new role will start to get a little ridiculous.

[USA Today]