Baltimore Ravens center Matt Skura’s return from injury is going well. And that might mean a pretty miraculous return to the field come training camp.
“Whenever training camp starts, I’d like to be out there if I’m feeling really good,” Skura told BaltimoreRavens.com’s Clifton Brown. “If I’m not ready at the beginning, then maybe we’d take a week to get me back in the groove. I’m trying not to rush back too quickly, but I don’t want to delay myself too long.
Skura suffered a devastating knee injury in Week 11 last season, tearing his ACL, MCL, PCL, and dislocating his knee cap. While that type of injury might have been a career ender even just a decade ago, Skura has been making steady strides towards returning. He’s posted updates on Twitter, showing him getting back to lifting weights, though he readily admits squats are a far cry from having to fend off a defensive tackle that wants to push you out of the way and put your quarterback into the dirt.
“I’m feeling good strength wise, and obviously I’m still building that up. I just have to see how I feel when there’s a moving target, or when there’s another 300-pound dude trying to get to the quarterback or a running back. We’ll see how it feels then. But as of right now, things are feeling good.”
While lifting heavy weights that quickly after a knee injury is impressive, Skura’s return to running again back in April is an even more encouraging sign.
“I’d say I’m almost at full speed running,” Skura said, per Brown. “I can’t go from a stop all the way to full speed as quickly as I used to yet, but I’m getting close to that, maybe 80 to 90 percent.”
Though Baltimore is returning most of its starting lineup from last season, they have a few competitions being set up. None are as intriguing as the starting center job, which is surprisingly deep this year. Now on a one-year, restricted-free-agent deal, Skura will need to return quickly and fully to ensure his roster spot, much less his place on the depth chart.
Though the Ravens got good results from Skura, who made 36 consecutive starts at both center and guard before his injury last season, his job is far from guaranteed. When Skura went down, Patrick Mekari stepped in and performed admirably and will undoubtedly be considered for the job again this season. Then there’s likely going to be a further push from Bradley Bozeman — who started all 16 games at left guard for Baltimore last season — as well as fourth-round pick Ben Bredeson and UDFA Trystan Colon-Castillo.
However, if Skura can continue his rapid return, it might just be his job to lose at training camp.
“I know I’ve made a lot of big strides,” Skura said. “I’m going to keep that going.”
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