As most people know, the first rule of April Fool's Day is don't believe anything you read on April Fool's Day.
Apparently though, there are a few Ravens fans out there who didn't get that memo because when the Ravens unveiled their April Fool's Prank on Saturday, dozens of fans fell for it.
So what was the Ravens' brilliant prank?
They announced that they would be taking a boat to London, instead of a plane, for their Week 3 game against the Jaguars. The team said that they would be traveling for seven days on a giant cruise ship that would include a full-length football field.
The Ravens will set sail from the Port of Baltimore immediately after their Week 2 game.
— Baltimore Ravens (@Ravens) April 1, 2017
📄: https://t.co/eFCcDpuuKy pic.twitter.com/1Ek8gX1Rwt
The Ravens went all in on this prank, too.
Not only did they put up a well-written story on their website, but they also had coach John Harbaugh make a video lauding the benefits of taking a seven-day cruise to London vs. flying for seven hours.
Harbaugh: "We're really looking forward to this."
— Baltimore Ravens (@Ravens) April 1, 2017
ð: https://t.co/eFCcDpcTlYpic.twitter.com/tl0BEiYgre
One of the most important things to building a team, especially a championship team, is the unity party, Harbaugh says with a straight-face.
"The way it's changed now with training camps not being away, you don't get a chance to do that like you used to. Just think of the opportunity. We're going to be on a ship for a whole week together with nowhere to go. We'll be together bonding our team all the way across the Atlantic Ocean," Harbaugh said.
In the article, Harbaugh also mentions that the seven-day cruise will help his players get adjusted to the time difference between Baltimore and London.
"Maybe more than anything is the sleep studies have proven that we'll have a chance to adjust our guys, day by day, all the way across the Atlantic," Harbaugh said. "So by the time we get to London, our guys will be fully acclimated to the time schedule and ready to go out there and play their very best."
As soon as the Ravens tweeted out the article, there were a few fans out there who immediately became concerned that the team might get sea sick before the game.
@ryanmink @Ravens i just pray the players don't get sea sick or something
— Champs (@Mchampsyt) April 2, 2017
@ryanmink Yeah great idea let's get sea sick the week of the game!!
— Jason Ferreri (@SmoothRuthless9) April 1, 2017
@Ravens Well damn bring the motion sickness pills
— . (@ray_flee) April 1, 2017
That's probably a good idea, although, too be fair, a sea sick Ravens team could probably still beat the Jaguars.
This guy was so excited, he was going to meet the Ravens in England.
@ryanmink This is such a great move, I love it. Gonna be standing on the shore welcoming them in
— PADDY (@paddy_delaney) April 1, 2017
This guy just wanted to make sure there was going to be a way for the Ravens to practice on their cruise ship.
@Ravens That's awesome, full football field on board?
— Chris Bronson (@Wokmaidog) April 1, 2017
This person wanted to know if fans were invited on the boat trip.
@Ravens Selling tickets to be on that ship?
— Julie (@julmem) April 1, 2017
There were also at least two fans who were concerned about the boat trip because of what happened the last time the Ravens did something outside the box. In 2015, the Ravens stayed out west on two different West Coast trips and went 0-2 on each trip.
@ryanmink @Ravens I hope this works out better than staying out west for two week three seasons ago did when they went 5-11.
— #Kloppnation (@dave_klopp) April 1, 2017
@ryanmink @Ravens Yeah, like staying the West Coast for a week and then losing both games......
— Ryananth (@ryananth) April 1, 2017
This fan also had some advice: Don't turn into the 2005 Vikings.
@Ravens Just don't turn it into a "Party Boat"
— Captain RAVEN (@RAVENBlood2Bone) April 1, 2017
The guy below has an important question.
Wonder who the lounge acts will be? #Ravens Will Take A Ship To #London Game https://t.co/Au3dkjERZc
— David Jacobs (@DavidJacobsLive) April 1, 2017
Anyway, the best part of the prank might've been the fact that this guy didn't believe it until he read about it on the internet.
@Ravens i think they're actually being serious because i'm seeing other sports pages report on it..
— RAVENS 😈😈 (@CharlesBrowns08) April 1, 2017
On an April Fool’s Day that gave us Tom Brady sharing #FakeNews from a real newspaper and where Le'Veon Bell said he wouldn’t sign his franchise tender, we're going to go ahead and declare the Ravens the winner.