Baltimore Ravens Baltimore Ravens Year founded: 1996 Helmet Logo City Baltimore, Maryland Team colors Purple, Black, and Gold Head Coach Brian Billick Owner Steve Bisciotti General manager Ozzie Newsome Mascot Edgar, Allan, and Poe Local radio Flagship stations: WBAL (1090) and WIYY (97.9) Announcers: Gerry Sandusky, Rob Burnett, Stan White League/Conference affiliations National Football League (1996-present) American Football Conference (1996-present) AFC Central (1996-2001) AFC North (2002-present) Team history Baltimore Ravens (1996-present) League titles League Championships (1) Super Bowl Championships (1) 2000 (XXXV) Conference Championships (1) AFC: 2000 Division Championships (1) AFC North: 2003 Home fields Memorial Stadium (Baltimore) (1996-1997) M&T Bank Stadium (1998-present) a.k.a. PSINet Stadium (1998-2002) a.k.a. Ravens Stadium (2002-2003) The Baltimore Ravens are a professional American football team based in Baltimore, Maryland. They are currently members of the Northern Division of the American Football Conference (AFC) in the National Football League (NFL). The Ravens have won one Super Bowl title, Super Bowl XXXV in 2001 against the New York Giants.
The history of the Baltimore Ravens is unusual due to the unprecedented actions taken by the cities of Baltimore and Cleveland, Ohio, and the NFL in 1996. On November 6, 1995, then-Cleveland Browns owner Art Modell announced his intention to move the team to Baltimore, citing the inadequacy of Cleveland Stadium and the lack of a sufficient replacement along with his heavy debt. The decision triggered a flurry of legal activity that ended when representatives of Cleveland and the NFL reached a settlement on February 8, 1996. It stipulated that the Browns' name, colors, and history of the franchise were to remain in Cleveland. A reactivated Cleveland Browns team would then begin play in 1999, while the relocated club would technically and legally be a new expansion team, the Ravens. The team's name comes from the famous poem, "The Raven", by Edgar Allan Poe, who spent the latter part of his life until his death in Baltimore.
For that reason, past records and Pro Football Hall of Fame players are attributed to the Browns and not to the Ravens. (For more information on the move, see Franchise History of the Cleveland Browns). However, some incorrectly consider the Ravens and the pre-1995 Browns organization as one continuous entity, using terms like "The Modell organization" or "Art Modell's franchise" to denote it.
Conversely, many Baltimore fans, who are still bitter about the Colts football team moving from Baltimore to Indianapolis, Indiana in 1984, along with many of the Colts' former players, view the pre-1984 Baltimore Colts organization and the Ravens as one continuous entity. In fact, the old Colts marching band became part of the Ravens organization.
