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Baltimore Celebrates Super Bowl Champion Ravens

Posted byBy Curtis Bunn | Published on: CommentsComments (0)
Ray Lewis with the Lombardi Trophy at Ravens’ parade.

Baltimore Ravens covered the streets of their city Tuesday, as thousands of fans in purple lining the streets celebrated the Super Bowl champions.

“The city of Baltimore — I love you forever and ever and ever and ever,” linebacker Ray Lewis, the only player with the team when it arrived in Baltimore in 1996, told fans in front of City Hall.

Fans filled the City Hall square and cheered when the team arrived and players held up the silver Lombardi trophy.

The players were about an hour late arriving, but fans waited to see them pile into military vehicles and set off on their drive to the stadium. Purple and white confetti shot over the city as the parade started and the Queen song, “We Are the Champions,” played over a loudspeaker.

Quarterback and Super Bowl MVP Joe Flacco and several other players rode in camouflage-colored military vehicles, while others stood on a float decorated like a football field with a yellow goal post.

Lewis had a position of honor in a military vehicle that brought up the end of the procession. He touched his hand to his heart and gave fans a double thumbs-up as he started on the parade route. Fans followed behind, surrounding the back of the vehicle.

Coach John Harbaugh thanked the fans for their support, and safety Ed Reed sang Eddie Money’s “Two Tickets to Paradise.”  Lewis told fans the team had fulfilled a promise to go to New Orleans and win.

Fans wore every article of purple clothing imaginable. In addition to team jerseys, people were dressed in purple hats and scarves, purple Mardi Gras beads, purple wigs. One man wore a Ravens flag as a cape, and many women came wearing purple lipstick and eye shadow.

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