The Baltimore Ravens hosted a relatively low-key press conference on Thursday for safety Ed Reed, who announced his retirement from the NFL a day earlier. Some takeaways from the 50-minute meeting with reporters:
» The presser opened with Ozzie Newsome heaping deserved praise on his old safety, who just might be the GM's greatest draft pick (and that's saying something). Said Newsome: "The next time I'm standing next to him like this will probably be in Canton."
» Reed's ensemble: Oversized jacket, no tie, black Under Armour baseball cap and largely unkempt beard generously peppered with white. Keepin' it 100. His left jacket lapel included both Ravens and University of Miami pins. There were no medallions connected to his final season split with the Texans and Jets, though he did thank both organizations.
» Random, but funny: Reed initially wanted to announce his retirement on April 20, but a friend talked him out of it because of "the quote-unquote things behind 4/20."
» The biggest laughs of the day came when a reporter asked Reed who was his favorite QB to play against: "Every quarterback in Cleveland I loved. Cincinnati, too. Pittsburgh was always a tough team to play."
» Personal anecdote: I once spent five hours with Reed on the red carpet at the 2013 Academy Awards. I wrote about it, which stands as definitive proof this wasn't a fever dream. Anyway, Reed was a nice guy. He had a major crush on Halle Berry, referenced the movie Tin Cup at least twice, and shared a personal moment with George Clooney, who embraced Reed and said, "You hurt me bad. I'm a Bengals fan."
Ed Reed certainly knew how to make an impression.
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