Learn the History Behind the Baltimore Ravens

The Baltimore Ravens are an National Football League team. They are part of the American Football Conference (AFC) North Division.

The Baltimore Ravens began their history as the Cleveland Browns. In 1995, the manager of the Browns at the time, Art Modell, wished to move his team to Baltimore. The city of Cleveland took legal action in oder to save the Browns, and was successful in saving the name and history of the Browns. Baltimore's new team would start with a clean slate, not carrying the full history of the Browns with it. They chose a new name with the move, the Baltimore Ravens, in honor of the famous poem "The Raven" by Edgar Allen Poe, who spent much of his life in Baltimore. The Baltimore Ravens were officially formed in 1996. A new Cleveland Browns organization would begin play in 1999.
The original logo for the Baltimore Ravens was a shield with a winged "B" featured on it. A controversy over the creation of the symbol emerged when the original artist, Frederick E. Bouchat, sued the Ravens for copyright infringement. Bouchat claimed that he had not received any credit or compensation for creating the image. The court, however, awarded him no damages while acknowledging that he was the creator. After 1998 the Ravens dropped the shield entirely, leaving only the winged "B."

The uniform of the Baltimore Ravens is different than most NFL teams. They're the first team to wear a dark jersey with similarly dark pants. This is now a somewhat fashionable practice in the NFL.
The Baltimore Ravens would go on to be a very successful NFL franchise. In 2000 they won their first Super Bowl. They defeated the New York Giants in Tampa, Florida, to win Super Bowl XXXV. They were also one of only three wild card teams to ever win a Super Bowl. That same season the Ravens broke multiple NFL records. They held opposing teams to a total of 165 points, breaking two previous records by the Chicago Bears.