The Ravens will be without left tackle Eugene Monroe for multiple weeks, Head Coach John Harbaugh announced.
Monroe had a minor surgical procedure on his knee Wednesday at 4 p.m.
"He'll be out for some number of weeks. I don't know how many; I don't think it's going to be on the long end," Harbaugh said. "That's something that we're going to get cleaned up. It came up last week and it came up in the game also."
Undrafted rookie tackle James Hurst is expected to step into the starting position.
Hurst is behind Monroe on the depth chart and has been practicing as his backup throughout camps and the preseason. The Ravens could move guard Kelechi Osemele to tackle, but Osemele said that's not the plan.
Baltimore's offensive line has played quite well this season and Osemele and right guard Marshal Yanda have been perhaps the best duo in the league. The Ravens likely won't want to totally shuffle the line.
The 6-foot-5, 308-pound Hurst came to Baltimore as a highly-touted undrafted rookie. He may have slipped out of the draft because of a broken leg suffered his senior year.
However, Hurst didn't miss any time this summer because of the injury and was one of two undrafted rookies, along with inside linebacker Zach Orr, to make the 53-man roster.
"I'm excited about it. I'm going to put in all the work I can to be prepared for Sunday," Hurst said about starting against the Carolina Panthers.
"I'm confident. We have a lot of good guys on the line that I've been able to learn from for a long time now. We've got a great coach, great coaching staff, great game plan. So I'm really confident I've got the pieces around me to help me as much as possible."
Hurst does have the advantage of getting his first NFL start at home, where it will be easier to communicate. Still, he does expect some nerves.
"I think if you're not nervous, you don't realize what's happening. It is a big situation."
The Ravens have faith in the North Carolina product, who was a four-year starter for the Tar Heels and earned first-team All-ACC honors as a senior. Hurst has gotten a lot of reps this summer, including with the first team when Monroe has sat out.
"He's done a great job all the way from OTAs to training camp till now," Osemele said. "He's been going against [Terrell Suggs] one-on-one, so I'm not really concerned. He's always been a hard worker and he's a consistent guy. So it's next man up."
"You're not going to get in this league unless you're a big, physical guy playing tackle," added tight end Owen Daniels. "I like how smart he is. He really has a great grasp of what we're doing up front – the blocking scheme. He's a great communicator, which is really important."
