OWINGS MILLS, Md. -- Terrell Suggs has gone from being a surprise pick for the Baltimore Ravens in 2003 to getting his name placed on the facade of M&T Bank Stadium 20 years later.
Suggs will get inducted into the Ravens' Ring of Honor on Oct. 22 at halftime of Baltimore's game against the Detroit Lions, the team announced Thursday. The franchise's all-time sacks leader, Suggs becomes the 12th Ravens player to join the Ring.
"You are a prime example of what it means to 'Play Like a Raven,'" Ravens executive vice president Ozzie Newsome said in announcing the induction. "For 16 seasons, it was a joy watching you perform in the purple and black. Through your leadership, dedication and dominance, you helped elevate our standard."
The Ravens felt fortunate that they landed Suggs two decades ago. In that draft, Baltimore completed a last-minute trade with the Minnesota Vikings to jump three spots to No. 7, where they would have taken quarterback Byron Leftwich. But because they got a busy signal when trying to inform league headquarters, time expired before the teams could complete the deal, and the Ravens chose Suggs with the No. 10 pick.
Suggs went on to become the 2003 NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year and 2011 NFL Defensive Player of the Year. He won a Super Bowl with the Ravens in 2012, finished with seven Pro Bowl appearances and produced countless laughs. One of the biggest characters in team history, Suggs was known as much for sacking Ben Roethlisberger as coming out of the tunnel for player introductions wearing a gladiator mask.
In 17 seasons, Suggs recorded 139 sacks, which ranks 12th in NFL history. Of those ahead of Suggs, 10 of the 11 are in the Pro Football Hall of Fame (Julius Peppers, who is fifth all-time, is eligible in 2024).
The Ravens' Ring of Honor began in 2001. The other 13 Ravens player and contributors in the Ring are: Earnest Byner (inducted in 2001), Art Modell (2003), Michael McCrary (2004), Peter Boulware (2006), Jonathan Ogden (2008), Matt Stover (2011), Jamal Lewis (2012), Ray Lewis (2013), Todd Heap (2014), Ed Reed (2015), Brian Billick (2019), Haloti Ngata (2021) and Marshal Yanda (2022).