Eugene Monroe To Miss Multiple Weeks Following Knee Surgery
By Brett Foote
Oct 13, 2013; Baltimore, MD, USA; Baltimore Ravens tackle Eugene Monroe (60) in action against the Green Bay Packers at M&T Bank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mitch Stringer-USA TODAY Sports
John Harbaugh dropped a bombshell on everyone at Wednesday’s press conference after announcing that starting left tackle Eugene Monroe will undergo minor knee surgery and will miss several weeks of action. Monroe gutted it out last week against the Browns, but the team admitted after the game that he had an issue with his knee.
LT Eugene Monroe will have a minor surgical procedure on his knee. Out an undetermined amount of time.
— Baltimore Ravens (@Ravens) September 24, 2014
Eugene Monroe is having knee surgery and will be out "some number of weeks" in John Harbaugh's words. #Ravens
— Luke Jones (@BaltimoreLuke) September 24, 2014
Losing Monroe would seem to be a huge blow to the Ravens, but his play this season has been merely mediocre through three games. It is quite possible the knee has been an issue for longer than the team has acknowledged. Harbaugh told the media that James Hurst would start in Monroe’s absence.
Asked where that leaves the #Ravens at left tackle, John Harbaugh said James Hurst is next up on the depth chart.
— Luke Jones (@BaltimoreLuke) September 24, 2014
Hurst is a rookie free agent who surprisingly made the team following final cuts. He was a four year starter at UNC and played in 50 career games with 48 starts. Hurst earned first team all-ACC honors as a senior in 2013 and was second team all-ACC as a junior.
The Ravens obviously believe in Hurst and will give him a fair shot at holding down the job until Eugene Monroe returns. It’s a big gamble, but then again it was a gamble to roll with an UDFA as your backup left tackle headed into the season. Hopefully Hurst will be able to at least perform admirably while Monroe is out, since the O-line has been perhaps the biggest strength of the team this season.