Student Follows Teacher

Ravens quarterback Steve M^cNair could have been in Hawaii this week to take part in the NFL's Pro Bowl festivities. He could have been taking snaps from one of the AFC's two All-Star centers, Indianapolis' Jeff Saturday and San Diego's Nick Hardwick.

Instead, the 2003 co-NFL Most Valuable Player kept his flowered shirts in the closet, as he declined to play in his fourth Pro Bowl earlier this week in lieu of his close friend and protege Vince Young. The Tennessee Titans' gunslinger was selected behind McNair as the third alternate.

Young, the NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year, will replace the Chargers' Philip Rivers and New England's Tom Brady. The third-overall pick in the 2006 NFL Draft, Young reminds many of an earlier version of McNair with not only his elusiveness and knack for making big plays, but also in their lives outside of football.

"That's one of the reasons why I took interest in trying to help him," said McNair when the two faced off for the first time in Week 11. "We had some similarities - on the football field because of his escapability and the way he plays the game - but also for things we shared off the field [like] not having a father figure, not having that stability."

Ironically enough, Young admitted that he has been hanging out with the five Ravens playing in the Pro Bowl - linebackersBart Scott, Terrell Suggs and Adalius Thomas, cornerback Chris McAlister, and safety Ed Reed - as noted in his blog with The Tennessean.

"Some of the Ravens' players have been calling me 'Little Steve,' and we kind of laugh and joke about that," Young said. "They know how close I am to Steve."

Note: Ravens tackle Jonathan Ogden, selected a starter for the AFC Pro Bowl team, will sit out the game due to a toe injury suffered late in the season. Ogden will miss his 10th-consecutive Pro Bowl and is being replaced with New England Patriots tackle Matt Light.

Ravens Sign Two

The Ravens signed two players this week, boosting their NFL Europa allocation list to five.

Defensive lineman Kenny King and offensive tackle Daniel Oliphant will join tight end Rob Abiamiri, linebacker Jimmy Cottrell and quarterback Drew Olson in the developmental league as Baltimore representatives.

King was a fifth-round draft pick of the Arizona Cardinals in 2003 out of the University of Alabama. At 6-4, 284 pounds, King appeared in 11 games with one start, collecting 21 tackles, two sacks, one fumble recovery and two forced fumbles his inaugural season. He was forced to spend the 2004 and 2005 seasons on the injured reserve with wrist injuries.

King was in Arizona's 2006 training camp, but was waived before the final cut. The Cardinals re-signed him in Week 14, where King was inactive for a macthup against the Seattle Seahawks, before releasing the defender on Dec. 12.

Oliphant, 6-5, 315 pounds, was a three-year starter for Division III Colby College, the alma mater of Ravens director of college scouting Eric DeCosta. A co-captain during his senior year in 2005, he was a volunteer assistant coach and worked with the offensive line last year for the Mules.

Aside from King and Oliphant, the initial three Ravens that will be sent to NFL Europa all ended the 2006 season on Baltimore's practice squad.