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 Comments and analysis from the Ravens' Super Bowl victory.
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 Super Bowl MVP Ray Lewis speaks with ESPN's Andrea Kremer.
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| | Wednesday, January 31
Lewis' return took all the hope from Giants
By Greg Garber
ESPN.com
TAMPA, Fla. -- You are the New York Giants. You have suffered through a horrific stretch of offense that saw drives end eight times in punts and four times
in interceptions.
|  | | Jermaine Lewis' 84-yard kickoff return was the Ravens' quick answer to the Giants only score of the night.
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After Duane Starks' 49-yard interception return, suddenly
you are trailing the Baltimore Ravens and their brutal defense 17-0 and your
chances of winning the Super Bowl seem to be down to, well, none.
And then rookie Ron Dixon breaks off a 97-yard kickoff return for a
touchdown 18 seconds later and, with 3 minutes and 31 seconds left in the
third quarter, you think that maybe, at 17-7, all is not lost.
"You think," said Giants linebacker Jessie Armstead, "that maybe
you're back in it."
Jermaine Lewis -- the Ravens' other Lewis -- ended those fleeting
thoughts 18 seconds later.
He took Brad Daluiso's ensuing kickoff at his own 16-yard-line in the
middle of the field. The fifth-year wide receiver and return specialist
accelerated, leaned a little to the left and bent back toward the right
sideline. Just before he reached midfield, he disappeared behind a wall of
Giants defenders.
There were four in all: Emmanuel McDaniel, Omar Stoutmire, Lyle West
and Dave Thomas -- defensive backs all. Somehow, Lewis skated past two
defenders, then teammate Corey Harris took out another. Only Thomas had a
shot at Lewis, who by now was nearly treading on the sideline. Thomas dove
and got a piece of Lewis' ankles, but it wasn't enough.
He stumbled briefly, then took the ball into the Giants' end zone. It
was an 84-yard return and it made the score 24-7. Three touchdowns had been
scored in the most cathartic 36 seconds in Super Bowl history.
Whatever meager currency of confidence the Giants had discovered, it
was now gone.
"Killed 'em," said Baltimore tight end Shannon Sharpe, who has played
for three of the last four Super Bowl champions. "Killed 'em."
Lewis himself was slightly more circumspect.
"I really thought that it was over after that one," he said. "You know,
they needed all they could to score a touchdown and for us to put a dagger
in them right away ... that just really put it away."
Understand, Lewis is a punt returner first and a spare wideout second.
He had exactly one kickoff return during the regular season because that job
belongs to Harris. In the playoffs, when Harris was injured, Lewis filled in
with three modest returns.
Sunday, with the Ravens' lethal defense shutting the Giants down, he
had just two opportunities. The first was the opening kickoff of the second half,
and he returned it 41 yards, but a holding penalty knocked it down to a
27-yard return. The second?
"I saw the hole inside, really," Lewis said. "So I threatened like I
was going inside and I bounced back outside and then went to the sidelines.
I knew before the game that all I had to do was keep my feet and I would get
into the end zone.
"They had a 97-yarder, so that's a lot of running and a lot of
celebrating, but you have to go right back out there."
Greg Garber is a senior writer for ESPN.com.
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