James Hurst playing well for the Baltimore Ravens

James Hurst started last Sunday for the Baltimore Ravens at left tackle following an injury to Eugene Monroe. Usually, starting an undrafted rookie is a bad sign for an offense, but Hurst performed extremely well for Baltimore. Let’s take a look at some of the praises being given to him from local beat writers to national NFL columnists.

Bill Barnwell, a highly respected columnist for the excellent website Grantland.com, listed Hurst among his forgotten players who have played well so far this season in his recent column titled “The NFL’s Out-of-Nowhere Players”. Here is an excerpt about Hurst…

"A veteran-laden roster and the enormous contract provided to Joe Flacco has left Baltimore with precious little depth at some key positions. One such spot is on the offensive line, particularly tackle, where starting right tackle Ricky Wagner was already a massive question mark. Things went from bad to worse when left tackle Eugene Monroe suffered a knee injury that will keep him out for several weeks, pushing Hurst into the lineup. Having a rookie undrafted free agent protecting your franchise quarterback isn’t exactly optimal, but the Ravens found themselves in just that predicament last weekend.It was natural to expect Hurst to be a liability in his debut as a starter, but he was entirely acceptable. He suited up, coincidentally, against the aforementioned Horton and the other members of Carolina’s end rotation, and he did a perfectly adequate job in pass protection, which was the biggest concern. The entire Carolina front four came away without either a sack or a hit, which is a credit to the work done by Baltimore’s offensive line. If Hurst plays like this, the Ravens won’t need to worry about rushing Monroe back into the lineup."

Hurst was also praised in a column from Baltimore Ravens.com writer Ryan Mink, who wrote…

"Rookie offensive tackle James Hurst is hitting the ice tub more often these days.The undrafted rookie has been thrown into service as the Ravens’ starting left tackle, replacing injured Eugene Monroe (knee).And in his first crack at it Sunday against the Carolina Panthers, Hurst got a passing grade.“He was kind of invisible,” Head Coach John Harbaugh said. “There were some things he can work on still, certainly, but he played well. There was no drop-off as he stepped in there.”Hurst got the Ravens’ lowest offensive grade (-1.4), according to Pro Football Focus.But that could be interpreted as essentially a positive grade considering it was the rookie’s first regular-season action. Monroe, who was hindered by his injury, got lower grades than that in two of his three starts to begin the year.Hurst didn’t give up a sack, quarterback hit or hurry against the Panthers. Per PFF, he performed better in pass blocking than against the run.“We watched the film and dissected it, so I know what I need to work on,” Hurst said. “I feel like I got the job done most of the time. It’s a building block for me.”Hurst said that the nerves were really only felt before the game started.“I knew the line was rolling, so I didn’t want to do anything to hinder that,” he said. “Eugene is a great player, so I had a big task against me. I just wanted to make sure I didn’t drop the ball.”"

If your coach calls you “kind of invisible” as an offensive tackle in the National Football League, that is a great thing.

Hurst played at Carolina and was an excellent left tackle protection Bryn Renner and Marquise Williams. But at the end of the season, he suffered an injury that kept him out of most of the draft combine and his draft stock fell as a result. He went undrafted and found a good situation in Baltimore. While Tar Heel fans would still love to have him in Carolina blue… (this came after of a Clemson sack,)

everyone wants to see him do well in the NFL.

Lets take a look at the former Tar Heel in action, from two plays in last weekend’s game against the Panthers.

Here is Hurst, circled in blue, lined up opposite Charles Johnson. Johnson is no slouch — he is an eight year vet in the National Football League and had 11 sacks last season.

The play call is a run to the left side of the offensive line. Look at the great job Hurst does walling off the left side of the hole for the running back. In this case, Luke Kuechly (red circle) beats his blocker and fills up the hole for a tackle, but Hurst does a great job on this play against a good defensive lineman.

Here is Hurst on another play, this time a play-action pass from quarterback Joe Flacco.


Look at how Hurst drives his man right up off the ground. He drives his man back on the play and Flacco has plenty of time on the rollout to make a good throw.

It is good to see that Hurst has found a good situation in Baltimore. He has an opportunity to shine these next few weeks with Eugene Monroe out, and Hurst seems to be making the most of that opportunity so far.

Images from NFL Game Rewind App.