Jonathan Ogden lived up to all of the hype; Where is he now?
BALTIMORE (BVM) – Dominant. Reliable. Ferocious.
These are just a few traits that NFL organizations look for when trying to land a franchise blindside blocker. It is rare to find someone with all three, but the Ravens managed to do that when they drafted Jonathan Ogden.
Before the NFL
Ogden might be the greatest pure athlete to ever come out of the Washington D.C. area. At St. Albans School, Ogden was an All-American in both football and track and field. For the 6-foot-9, 345-pound tackle, both sports were very important to him.
In fact, he chose to go across the country to UCLA partly because they allowed him to participate in both.
In Los Angeles, Ogden would become one of the greatest players in program history.
He served as the starting left tackle for all four seasons he was there, being a big part of the 1993 team that won the Pac-10 Championship and the Rose Bowl.
In 1995, Ogden won both the Outland Trophy and the Morris Trophy.
Following his collegiate career, Ogden was inducted into the UCLA Athletics Hall of Fame in 2006 and had his No. 79 retired by the school. In 2012, he was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame.
NFL career
In the 1996 NFL Draft, the newly rebranded Baltimore Ravens took Ogden with their first-ever draft pick at No. 4 overall. Director of player personnel, Ozzie Newsome, was deemed responsible for the selection.
Newsome has made plenty of great decisions as an NFL executive, but drafting Ogden may be his crown jewel.
The behemoth of a tackle turned into one of the very best in NFL history.
The 12-year veteran made 11 Pro Bowls throughout his career and was first-team All-Pro four times.
Ogden was a part of many good Ravens teams, including the Super Bowl XXXV Championship team in 2001.
Where is he now?
Ogden now lives in Las Vegas where his primary gig is running his non-profit organization, The Ogden Family Foundation. They focus on helping local kids excel both on and off the field.
Outside of this, he tends to stay out of the public eye, but he is still very much tuned in to his former team, placing a futures bet on the Ravens this summer.
