Ray Lewis had his Super Bowl media availability Wednesday morning, and the first question was about the allegations that he attempted to obtain a banned substance, as reported by Sports Illustrated. The Baltimore Ravens linebacker vehemently denied the report for the second consecutive day.
"Honestly, and I'm going to say it very clearly again, I think it's one of the most embarrassing things we can do on this type of stage," Lewis said. "You give somebody the ability to come into our world, our world is a very secret society and we try to protect our world as much as we can. When you let cowards come in and do things like that, to try to disturb something ... the reason why I'm smiling is because it's so funny of a story because I've never, ever took what he says or whatever I was supposed to do.
"It's just sad, once again, that someone could have so much attention on a stage this big, where the dreams are really real. I don't need it. My teammates don't need it. The (San Francisco) 49ers don't need it. Nobody needs it because it really just shows you how people really plan things and try to attack people from the outside. It's just foolish, very foolish. The guy has no credibility. He's been sued four or five times over the same B.S."
Mitch Ross, owner of S.W.A.T.S., told Sports Illustrated that Lewis requested deer antler spray and other remedies to quickly return from a torn right triceps. The spray contains the banned substance IGF-1 -- a natural, anabolic hormone that stimulates muscle growth and plays an important role in childhood growth and development. Ross claims it's not a steroid.
A reporter asked Lewis if he's angry about dealing with the backlash of this story.
"Never angry," Lewis said. "I'm too blessed to be stressed. ... You can use the word agitated."
Is it a distraction?
"It's not. It's a joke, if you know me," Lewis said with a grin. "I tell them (my teammates) all the time, 'Don't let people from the outside ever come and try to disturb what's inside.'
"That's the trick of the devil. The trick of the devil is to kill, steal and destroy. That's what he comes to do. He comes to distract you from everything you're trying to do."
Follow Kareem Copeland on Twitter @kareemcopeland.
