Ray Lewis Remains Marketable, Despite Checkered Past

Ray Lewis continues to score on and off the field, misdeeds notwithstanding.

Apparel company Under Armour Inc. choose the Baltimore Ravens All-Pro middle linebacker who was almost certainly wearing the company's cleats when his team opened its season last night with a loss at Cincinnati.

The Baltimore-based performance apparel company said Lewis has signed a multiyear deal, according to the
Baltimore Business Journal.

Lewis' public image was tarnished following a Super Bowl party in January 2000 after which two men were stabbed to death outside of an Atlanta nightclub. Lewis went for a guilty plea to a misdemeanor charge of obstruction of justice and agreed to testify against two men he was with, each of whom were charged with murder.

Lewis was sentenced to a year of unsupervised probation and though he was not suspended by the NFL, he was fined a league record $250,000.

Photo of Ray Lewis by Rob Tringali/Sportschrome

"Ray's a performance guy, which matches our brand, and he brings a lot to a team on and off the field as well," Steve Battista, Under Armour's vice president of brand marketing said.

Amazing isn't it?

And sad.