Brent Urban may be a little too eager to be back on the field.
The Ravens' second-year defensive end got too close to Joe Flacco on a pair of plays during Wednesday's Organized Team Activities (OTAs), drawing the ire of Head Coach John Harbaugh.
"He got sent to his room for a couple of plays," Harbaugh said with a chuckle.
"We do like to keep our guys away from the quarterback. He got a little too close, and then he was like celebrating it. That's what sent me over the edge. It's like, 'Do you not understand what we're doing here?' But he has practiced really well."
Urban will be forgiven, especially considering he's got a good excuse to be excited.
Urban spent his entire rookie season on injured reserve due to an ACL tear suffered near the start of last year's training camp.
Now the gargantuan 6-foot-7, 295-pounder is back to 100 percent, per Harbaugh, and is cleared for full OTA action. He was running with the first-team defense during Wednesday's practice.
"It feels good – really good," Urban said. "It's fun to be out there instead of just doing rehab day to day, the same thing over and over. It's fun to be doing what I came here for."
The fourth-round pick was off to a good start in OTAs and mandatory minicamp last year. He shows a lot of power coming off the snap, and is able to disrupt passing lanes with his long wingspan.
Last year's injury, coupled with Kapron Lewis-Moore's Achilles tear, was a blow to the Ravens' young defensive line rotation. It was particularly tough for Urban because he's been through it before. He tore his other ACL six years ago and fought through an ankle injury during his senior year at Virginia.
Urban isn't worried about more injuries. He says he views them as just a "freak thing" and that he's always come back not feeling any residual effects.
"I honestly feel a little bit stronger than last year because I was coming in with an ankle injury and I couldn't really lift lower body," Urban said. "This whole offseason I've been able to lift lower body. I feel a fair bit stronger and every bit as athletic."
Urban will likely be in a rotation behind veteran defensive end Chris Canty, who is in a very similar mold at 6-foot-7, 317 pounds. Urban will compete for snaps with fellow returning injured lineman Lewis-Moore and DeAngelo Tyson.
Despite his injury, Urban was able to attend all the positional meetings during his rookie season. He says he feels very comfortable in the defense.
"I'm going into it with the same mindset I did my rookie year, just coming in to make an impact," Urban said. "I know my ability and I feel like I can play at this level at a high level."
