Ray Rice: From Super Bowl champion to NFL pariah

There aren't many true three-down backs in the NFL anymore. Ray Rice used to be one of them.

He was an important cog in the Baltimore Ravens offense, but his life changed forever once damning surveillance video was released to the public. He never played another snap in the NFL after that. All statistics are sourced from Football Reference.

Rice was born in New Rochelle, New York, with a lot to overcome as a child. His father was killed when he was only one year old, and his cousin who took care of him was killed when Rice was 11 years old.

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As a result, he had to help his mother make ends meet as a kid by taking odd jobs at barbershops and catering halls, according to Baltimore Beatdown.

Rice and his mom didn’t have much to their name, which drove the boy to focus on his athletic pursuits with that much more determination. He was a star on the football field, as he scored 31 touchdowns in his senior season. Rice was also a force on the basketball court, as he was a point guard that led the team to a state finals.

The amount of promise Rice showed as a prospect left college sports programs tripping over themselves to recruit him. Rutgers University ended up bringing him to campus, and he did not disappoint. Rice sliced and diced defenses, especially as a sophomore and a junior when he scored 20 and 24 rushing touchdowns, respectively.

Rice’s collegiate resume was awfully impressive, which made him attractive to NFL scouts. The 5’9”, 195 pound back possessed a rare combination of power and speed that few prospects have in tandem. Rice was selected in the second round of the 2008 NFL Draft by the Baltimore Ravens, as new head coach John Harbaugh looked to infuse his roster with talent.

After being eased into action as a rookie, Rice quickly proved that he was one of the premier ball carriers in the NFL. He made the Pro Bowl in three of his first five seasons.

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In 2011, Rice led the league in total yards from scrimmage, and scored 12 touchdowns on the ground. He was also a threat catching passes out of the backfield.

Rice was an instrumental piece of the Ravens run to the Super Bowl during the 2012 season. He scored a touchdown on the ground in the Division Round and AFC Championship game.

Rice couldn’t be stopped against the Denver Broncos in the second round of the playoffs, amassing 131 yards rushing.

Video surfaced of Rice dragging his then-fiancée Janay Palmer out of an elevator in February 2014. There were reports that Rice had struck his partner before she was removed from the elevator, but nothing could be confirmed. The NFL kept a close eye on the situation, as the league knew they would be pressed to suspend the running back.

The moments leading up to Palmer being dragged out of the elevator became clear after video was released that showed Rice punching her. This was a difficult image to stomach for the general public, and Baltimore released the running back immediately after the footage went public. Rice’s image took a major hit as a result.

Since the Ravens released Rice in September 2014, no other team has come calling for his football services. It was a stunning fall from grace, as the former Rutgers star was one of the best NFL players for a six-year period. No NFL franchise wanted to deal with the backlash of employing someone who had acted so violently in a public setting.

Despite the fallout from the incident, Janay Palmer and Ray Rice did end up getting married. Many people do not understand why Palmer would have given Rice a second chance after his behavior that evening.

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She has come out in support of her now-husband, saying that he made a mistake and is still someone she wants to spend the rest of her life with.

Before a December 2023 home game, the Ravens honored Rice and several others who played with the franchise as "Legends Of The Game." This was a controversial move by Baltimore, as the organization received questions about why Rice was being rewarded after a graphic off the field assault.