Ray Lewis' offer to Ahmad Brooks reportedly declined

Ray Lewis can put his American Express card away.

On Monday, the former Raven-turned-ESPN talking head expressed his outrage at the penalty called on the 49ers’ Ahmad Brooks for his hit on Saints quarterback Drew Brees on Sunday. Lewis, speaking for linebackers past, present and future, called the penalty an “insult to defenders” and said it was a clean, hard hit. Then Lewis waved his credit card and said he would pay half of Brooks’ inevitable fine from the NFL.

Now that Brooks has indeed been fined $15,750, he said he won’t take Lewis’ money, ESPN reported.

Lewis was insistent, though.

“I will see Ahmad on Monday and I will have a check in hand for half of the fine,” Lewis said, again as reported by ESPN. The 49ers play the Redskins next week on Monday Night Football on the four-letter network.

Lewis isn’t the only former linebacker now paid to opine on ESPN who has expressed his willingness to offset Brooks’ fine. Tedy Bruschi has, too. "Linebackers, we've got each other's back," Bruschi said. "Keep hitting him hard.”

Speaking of hitting hard, in writing this story, Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio took a shot at Lewis: “When he was playing football, it was all about Ray Lewis.  Now that he’s not playing, it’s still all about Ray Lewis.”

Ouch. Is that unnecessary roughness?


(csnbaltimore.com)