how good was Ed Reed actually well when you look up Ball Hawk in the dictionary there's just a picture of Ed Reed no safety has ever been more complete we're talking about a guy who once baited Payton Manning but also leveled players for fun a guy who has the two longest pick sixes in NFL history a guy who bill bich called you're the best free safety that's ever played this game and I've seen you're awesome to understand how good Ed Reed really was we need to understand how Ed Reed came to be looking at the many highs and even lows of his illustrious career for many high school football stars playing offense is what they love and defense is just something they have to do Ed Reed didn't see it that way for nearly his entire High School career in destan Louisiana Reed was all about the defense sure he took snaps at various positions on offense but where he truly thrived was at safety in his senior season alone he recorded 83 tackles seven interceptions three forced fumbles and returned three punts for touchdowns and like many before him football was Reed's ticket out of a tough situation early on in his NFL career he opened up about his upbringing and admitted I never was in jail but I did some things that probably would have put me there fortunately for Reed the Hurricanes Came Calling with several other offers Reed picked Big East Powerhouse Miami to continue his career the U dominated the 80s and early '90s racking up four national championships in N9 years but when Reed arrived it had been 5 years since their last title and he was about to be a big part of getting back to their winning ways after red shirting the 1997 season he was given his first test as a starter in '98 Reed passed with flying color grabbing two interceptions and forcing four fumbles in 1999 he followed up with two more interceptions but this was all just a taste of what was to come in his final two seasons for the canes in 2000 Reed averaged two pass breakups a game and totaled a whopping eight interceptions earning him consensus first team All-American honors then somehow Reed put together an even more iconic senior campaign he led the NCAA with nine interceptions being named the 2001 Big East Defensive Player of the Year and apart from Reed's individual honors Miami went undefeated culminating in a National Championship win over the Nebraska Corn Huskers in the Rose Bowl Reed finished his career at Miami as a national champion and the most accomplished DB in the school's history as he still holds the all-time interception record with 21 but after becoming a household name as a hurricane Reed now had the NFL in his sights Reed's hard-hitting and nose for the football causes many NFL fans to forget he was not an elite athlete by NFL standards he stood at just 5'1 200 5 lb this for all the people always say every small and his 4.57 40 yard dash in the 2002 NFL combine was middle of the pack but what the Ravens saw in Ed Reed were his instincts and work ethic leading them to draft him 24th overall in the 2002 draft after Reed was drafted by Baltimore ex-ravens head coach Brian bck described him as the smartest player I've ever coached his natural intuition and preparation for the game exceeds anything I've ever been around no player had better range and Reed proved his coach right from the jump emphatically introducing himself to the rest of the league he broke up 12 passes tallied five interceptions and had 85 tackles in his rookie season nowadays those numbers would undoubtedly lead to a Pro Bowl selection and maybe even an all pro team but after a tremendous debut Reed was snubbed and this would serve as fuel for him to up the ante in 2003 he increased his past defended total to 15 while also upping his interception total to seven including a pick six throw in a forced fumble and 71 tackles and Reed had solidified himself as an elite DB in Just 2 years getting that Pro Bowl nod and second Team all proo selection he was robbed of the year before he also made his playoff debut that year in a 2017 loss to the Tennessee Titans although it ended in a Ravens defeat Reed brought down his first playoff interception during an exceptional performance and then for a third straight season Reed upped his game again his 2004 campaign was nothing short of one of the greatest Seasons we've ever seen from a safety Reed registered 17 passes defended and led the league in interceptions with nine including a then NFL record 106 yard pick six Ed Reed takes it out of the Ed Zone this season showed the world that Reed was not only an elite Ball Hawk but also an elite Runner with the ball in his hands his 358 interception return yards in ' 04 broke the NFL single season record he also forced three fumbles had 78 tackles and earned two sacks Reed was every everywhere leaving little to debate as he was named Defensive Player of the Year in addition to a first team All Pro nod and his second straight Pro Bowl the craziest thing about his 04 performance was that the Ravens missed the playoffs and unfortunately 2005 didn't get much better for the first time in his career Reed missed significant time due to injury after playing nearly every game at Miami and every game through his first three NFL seasons an ankle injury caused him to miss six games Reed still played at a solid level but it was clear that he wasn't 100% and Baltimore missed the playoffs for the second straight year regardless the Ravens knew they had a special player and made sure to get out the checkbook ahead of the ' 06 season paying Reed $40 million over 6 years locking in Ed Reed for the next 6 years was a no-brainer but even the Ravens couldn't have anticipated how dominant the safety was going to be from 2006 to 2012 of all the QBs that explained why Reed is so dangerous NFL legend Tom Brady may have phrased it best you never knew what he saw but he saw everything you were never going to fool him he was just on some incredible defenses he's one of the greatest safeties I've ever seen yeah Ed Reed Ed Reed was if you haven't seen him go watch him the guy was unbelievable and uh played as good as any secondary play in history Ed Reed in 2006 Reed rebounded from injury to start all 16 games nabbing five interceptions for his second first team All Pro honor and he continued to build a reputation for playing his best in the playoffs in an ugly 156 loss to the Indianapolis Colts Reed picked off Payton Manning twice in 2007 he followed up with another seven interceptions breaking up 13 passes for good measure but in 2008 the Raven Star had yet another alltime great season Reed tied his 2004 interception total with nine leading the league in interceptions for the second time he also defended 16 passes and forced and recovered a fumble for a touchdown along with two pick sixes one of which was a 107 y breaking his own record for the longest in NFL history Baltimore fans should still be upset that Steelers defensive end James Harris and won defensive player of the year that season even more upsetting is that Pittsburgh beat the Ravens in the AFC Championship keeping Reed out of the Super Bowl for another year even with two interceptions in Baltimore's three playoff games Reed's dominance wasn't enough another injury disrupted his 2009 season but Reed was still a second Team all pro and had three interceptions even his down ear were better than most safety's best and he was a monster in the Ravens playoff campaign with two interceptions in their two games as injuries became a more prevalent thing in Reed's career his 2010 season can only be described as one of the NFL's great wha ifs due to a hip issue Reed underwent surgery before the season began recovery took far longer than anticipated meaning that he had to miss the first six games of the campaign but when he finally did hit the field in week seven any doubts were instantly erased Reed made his return with two interceptions and in his 10 appearances in 2010 Reed brought down multiple interceptions on three occasions he ended the regular season with eight interceptions a league High despite missing nearly half the season despite a critical injury surgery and significantly less time Reed still earned his fifth first team allpro honor Reed had never played better in his career but he had back-to-back Seasons with significant injuries and was about to experience one of the toughest moments of his life on January 7th 2 days before the Ravens were set to face the Kansas City Chiefs in the Wild Card round and Reed lost his brother Brian according to Reed's account Brian was having mental issues before driving off from his family the Reed family called the authorities in order to bring him home contacted the police and had to report the car stolen to try to basically slow my brother down and and just bring him in bring him home but Brian refused to comply and jumped off a bridge in Harvey Louisiana Ed was Shell Shocked he was tough but this kind of loss was something different he was a loving kid Reed said he had a son who he cherished and loved that was his reason for living we are not immune from trials and tribulations that go through life despite suffering an incredible loss there was only one thing Reed could do get back on the field and play the game that had always been his Escape everybody know what one on this week will Reed he put it aside and he played for us that's a true champion and a true warrior that the Ravens defense rallied around Reed only giving up seven points in their 37 win over the Chiefs and teammate Terrell Suggs said after the game who's a better teammate than Ed Reed he didn't have to play today but he chose to play it was the simple fact that we wanted to give him 3 hours of Peace it definitely was an emotional win for him and the rest of us too unfortunately the Ravens weren't able to carry that momentum over to the next week as they lost to the Steelers in the divisional round in 2011 Reed appeared in every regular season game for the first time since 2008 he made his eighth Pro Bowl appearance after a three interception season and the Ravens made their second AFC championship appearance with Reed and as so many playoff hopefuls did they fell short to Brady and the Patriots entering his 34-year-old season it was clear what Reed was missing he' accomplished everything except the Lombardi trophy time was not just running out in terms of the safety's age but 2012 would also Mark the final year of his six-year deal with Baltimore through the first 11 games of the Season it appeared as if the Ravens were the NFL's team to beat Baltimore went 9-2 and Reed had three interceptions and 11 passes defended but Baltimore didn't just cruise from there in fact things were about to get really Rocky for the Ravens Baltimore lost their next three games after another brutal rivalry loss to the Steelers they were then upset by Washington and dismantled by Payton Manning and the Broncos all the confidence from the first half of the Season had disappeared Baltimore was entering the playoffs but they were limping in and first up Andrew Luck and the Colts Baltimore's defense found itself right away not allowing Indianapolis to score a single touchdown it was the exact type of win Reed and the Ravens defense needed but that win set up a divisional round rematch with the Broncos less than a month after Manning torched the Ravens Baltimore used everything in the tank both teams traded Haymaker after Haymaker before Ravens QB Joe flacko found a Mile High Miracle in the form of jacobe Jones streaking down the sideline to tie the game at 35 and force overtime while that game was more about the offense it was Reed's partner at safety Cory Graham who picked off Manning late in overtime to set up a Justin Tucker game-winning field goal kick is on it way and it looks good for the third time in his career Reed was headed back to the AFC Championship once again Brady and the Patriots awaited the Ravens who else but this was a rare moment where Brady was human throwing two interceptions and keeping Baltimore in the game after taking an early lead both Baltimore's offense and defense came in clutch late after scoring two TDS to take a 2813 lead the defense held off Brady to punch their ticket to the Super Bowl the Ravens met the San Francisco 49ers in the Super Bowl setting up the Harbaugh Bowl but from Reed's perspective this was simple this was his only chance at a Lombardi trophy it was the biggest game of his career and like nearly every playoff appearance before it Reed was ready to make a statement after the Ravens jumped out to a 14-3 lead Reed locked on to 49ers QB Colin Kaepernick and intercepted him to set up a potential blowout while the 49ers refused to roll over they dug themselves too deep a hole to climb out after building a 28-6 lead Baltimore held on to win 3431 for the organization's second ever Super Bowl just a year removed from the death of his brother Reed had finally reached the Pinnacle of pro football the kid from Louisiana honored his brother's memory the best way he knew how by becoming a champion the following offseason Reed considered retirement but he just couldn't do it despite the Ravens allowing him to walk he was a free agent for the first time in his career and he decided to switch teams for the first time joining the Houston Texans for one last payday it lasted until November after a loss to the Arizona Cardinals Reed publicly said that the Texans had been outplayed and outcoached he was then released but Reed's Football story didn't end there instead he gave it one last ride with the New York Jets to end the 2013 season in seven games with the team he totaled three interceptions not too shabby for a 35-year-old Ed Reed finished his career seventh all time in interceptions and first in interception return yards he racked up nine Pro bowls and five First Team all Pros on his way to becoming a first ballot Hall of Famer in 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