Terrell Suggs has another chance to establish himself as an NFL starter, and this time around, he and the Ravens coaches swear things will be different.
Suggs is set to start the first game of his pro career Sunday against the Oakland Raiders, 13 games later than he was projected to take over the position.
The Ravens penciled in Suggs as a starter shortly after he was selected with the 10th pick of the draft in April. While Suggs worked with the first team throughout the minicamps and some in training camp, he had more trouble making the switch from college defensive end to NFL strong-side linebacker than the team anticipated.
Specifically, Suggs struggled with his assignments in pass coverage and was hesitant in attacking the line of scrimmage on runs. Eventually, the Ravens were forced to rotate Adalius Thomas and Cornell Brown by series, while simplifying Suggs' role to rushing the passer as a defensive end during the regular season.
But with a season-ending injury to Thomas, Suggs is primed to grab the linebacker spot and hold onto it for years to come thanks to a change in mind-set and a gradual increase in responsibility during practices.
"I think I'm a lot better," Suggs said. "The main thing is confidence. [At first] I was like, `I'm a defensive end, and you're trying to get me to drop back and cover these receivers?' But now I've got my confidence up. Pete [Boulware] did it, so I'm trying to do that, too."
Suggs is still expected to rotate in base defense situations with Brown - one of the Ravens' best run-stoppers - but his overall number of snaps could nearly double.
He is coming off a performance in which he sacked Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Jon Kitna twice in the Ravens' 31-13 win Sunday. A day later, Suggs was on a plane back to Arizona, where he faced charges of felony aggravated assault stemming from a fight after a basketball game last March.
Suggs, though, vowed that will not be a distraction and expressed more disappointment that his first start did not come at M&T Bank Stadium.
"The only bad thing about it is we're not in Baltimore," Suggs said. "I don't get to run out and hear my name called with the Raven-eye [SmartVision graphic] thing."
Coaches feel he can better handle being an every-down player after nearly a year of apprenticeship.
"He's been preparing all year for this," defensive coordinator Mike Nolan said.
