COLTS DRAFT BUBBA SMITH; TRENT DILFER JOINS RAVENS

By Joe Platania

1956 -- Hall of Fame tight end and Ravens general manager Ozzie Newsome was born in Muscle Shoals, Ala.

1967 -- The AFL and NFL held the first-ever common draft, and the Colts acquired the first overall pick in a trade with the expansion New Orleans Saints. Baltimore took Michigan State defensive lineman Charles "Bubba" Smith with that pick. The team also took Michigan safety Rick Volk (second round), Maryland State (now UMES) corner Charlie Stukes (fourth), Illinois defensive back Preston Pearson (12th) and Morgan State defensive back Bob Wade (15th).

1978 -- The seventh and final officiating position was created as the "side judge" slot was instituted to oversee contact occurring deep in the secondary.

1979 -- A series of rule changes prohibited the use of tear-away jerseys and instituted the "in-the-grasp" rule to protect quarterbacks in the pocket.

1987 -- Broadcast Committee chairman Art Modell and commissioner Pete Rozelle announced the league's first TV contract with a cable network, a 13-game Sunday-night package with ESPN. The contract was due to expire in 1990.

1988 -- Hopes for the St. Louis Cardinals to move to Baltimore were permanently dashed when the league approved the team's move to Phoenix.

1990 -- Football-starved Baltimore fans became optimistic about the city's chances of getting back into the NFL when commissioner Paul Tagliabue announced the formation of the league's new Committee on Expansion and Realignment.

1992 -- After six straight years of use, the league's instant replay system was voted out of existence at the league owners' meeting.

1997 -- After the Ravens trained at what was then called Western Maryland College without a contract the previous year, the team and school entered into a five-year contract to continue to hold camp at the Westminster site.

2000 -- In a transaction that didn't create many waves at the time, the Ravens inked much-maligned former Tampa Bay quarterback Trent Dilfer to back up Week One starter Tony Banks.

2001 -- To beef up the offensive line, the defending Super Bowl champion Ravens signed ex-Jacksonville tackle Leon Searcy, who was injured on the first play of the team's training-camp intrasquad scrimmage five months later.

2004 -- A trade made earlier in March that would have brought San Francisco receiver Terrell Owens to Baltimore for a second-round pick was reconfigured before arbitration. The Ravens recovered their second-round pick and received a fifth-round compensatory pick from Philadelphia, which eventually signed Owens.

2004 -- The Ravens' long-standing quarterback quandry was partially addressed with the signing of veteran free-agent and eventual backup Anthony Wright.

2006 -- For the second and final time, the Ravens cut ties with tackle Orlando "Zeus" Brown. The team also said farewell to linebacker and 1997 first-round pick Peter Boulware, the team's leading sack artist at the time. A pair of former Denver Broncos free agents joined the fold during the same week, defensive lineman Trevor Pryce and running back Mike Anderson.

2009 -- The Ravens terminated the contract of cornerback Samari Rolle, a free-agent pickup who quickly became a fan favorite, as a vested veteran. On the same day, the team signed signed former Tennessee Titan and Oakland Raider corner Chris Carr.

Posted March 12, 2012