Canadians expected to play big roles with Ravens
Urban, Urschel expected to play key roles in Year 3 with NFL Ravens
A pair of third-year Baltimore Ravens born north of the border might be on the cusp of breakout seasons: defensive end Brent Urban and offensive left guard John Urschel.
“We like our Canadians,” head coach John Harbaugh said Friday, following the team’s second training-camp practice.
The 6-foot-7, 295-pound Urban was born in Brampton, Ont., and raised in both Toronto and suburban Mississauga. The 6-foot-3, 300-pound Urschel was born in Winnipeg, and raised there as well as in Niagara-on-the-Lake and Buffalo.
“They’re both guys we thought were undervalued in the (2014) draft, for whatever reason,” Harbaugh said. “Then, when you got to know them, you knew they were going to be achievers and over-achievers and all that.”
By the end of his rookie season Urschel started the regularseason finale, plus both Baltimore playoff games. Last year, he eventually started seven games, after suffering a nasty concussion in training camp.
The first year-and-a-half of Urban’s pro career was derailed by a pair of serious injuries: a torn right ACL a month after being drafted and, after a solid spring last year, a biceps tear that sidelined him until November.
Both players are healthy now, with hopes of playing larger roles in 2016. Starting roles, preferably.
Yet Urschel swears that is something he’s not obsessing over.
“I’ve never really made goals like that in my life,” the Penn State University mathematics scholar said.
“My goal is just to improve, and just take it day-to-day, and try to be a better football player than I was yesterday. And, at the end of the day, help my team win however I can.
“Every day I just try to learn everything I can from Marshal Yanda, the best guard in the league.”
There’s pressure on any NFLer to entrench himself in Year 3 of his four-year rookie contract.
“This is true,” the 25-yearold Urschel said. “But it’s only pressure if you let yourself think about that. I mean, there’s pressure everywhere. There’s pressure to make a team, there’s pressure to feed your family. I can’t let those things affect me.”
The “hallmark” for any NFL guard, Urschel said, is to be able to both effectively run-block and pass-block a “3-technique”defensive tackle — an attacking, quick-bursting, usually less weighty interior lineman.
“Those are the check marks,” Urschel said. “To do all of those things consistently — not just on one play, but every play.”
Urban, who’s also 25, is battling Lawrence Guy and Bronson Kaufusi for the majority of snaps at defensive end in Baltimore’s 3-4 base scheme. Guy is the run-stop specialist. Urban excels most as a pass rusher.
“It’s a tough competition,” said Urban, who played college ball at the University of Virginia. “I want to start and play as much as possible. These next couple of weeks are when we’re going to figure that out. I’m going to compete for it. The best man will play. It’s a great competition.
“This is the best I’ve felt coming into a season physically, and now mentally because of those six games that I played late last year. It’s a great combination and I think I’m going to do good things this year.”
Although Urban doesn’t remember it, he said he and Urschel met each other at a college recruiting camp in Ontario, late last decade. “We’ve reminisced about that,” said Urban, who as a bantam and peewee played Triple-A hockey player with, and against, a few future NHLers.
Baltimore’s first regular-season game this year is at home, against the Buffalo Bills. Urschel attended Buffalo’s Canisius High School. He knows a ton of Bills fans. While Urban never attended any games at the Bills’ Ralph Wilson Stadium while growing up a 90-minute drive away, he knows many who did.
“I have a bunch of friends who started messaging me as soon as the schedule came out (in April). They’re all Bills fans, so I’ve got a ton of friends coming down for that opening game. It should be a good one.”
It’s possible both Canadians could start in it. “Urschel has proven himself,” Harbaugh said. “He’s played here quite a bit ... even started playoff games. And he’s always played well.
“Then with Brent Urban, he’s just been injured. I think he’s worked really hard to get that lower-body strength and flexibility right. He played at the end of last year and did really well.
“We’ve got high hopes for both those guys.”