When NFL commissioner Roger Goodell asked Michael Oher about speaking at the New York City Boys & Girls Club a few months ago, the Ravens offensive lineman had just one request:
Would he be able to return in time the next day to make the team's early-morning conditioning session?
"He's unique in today's world," Ravens offensive coordinator Cam Cameron said.
Oher is truly a throwback player, someone who would have been more likely to play alongside Ozzie Newsome than to have been drafted by him.
During the past year, he has turned down offers to attend the Academy Awards and the ESPYs for the hit movie "The Blind Side," which depicts Oher's rise from a homeless teenager in Memphis, Tenn. The weight room is more his style than the red carpet. When Oher injured his ankle one morning at training camp, trainers needed only to tape it up, and the 6-foot-4, 313-pound lineman was back on the field for the afternoon practice.
And while fans and reporters want to talk about Oher's switch from right to left tackle, he couldn't seem to care less. The reserved yet intense Oher gives the sense that he simply wants to hit someone and would be happy to knock you down if you lined up in a three-point stance.
"These guys took a chance on me and drafted me. I'm going to do what they tell me to do and play football," Oher said. "I love the game and have much respect for it."
Oher added: "I just like football. That comes first. This is a big business. You have to take your job seriously."
Oher's commitment was evident in his first season with the Ravens. After he slid to 23rd in the first round of the 2009 draft, there were some concerns that he might not be able to pick up the playbook quickly. Pro Football Weekly's Draft Guide questioned his intelligence, saying he "will require extra attention to absorb a playbook."
But Oher persevered mentally as well as physically. He became the first Ravens rookie offensive lineman since Jonathan Ogden in 1996 to start all 16 games.
"I know the road bumps that I had, and I remember the rookie wall," said guard Ben Grubbs, who started 12 games as a rookie in 2007. "It seemed like he really didn't have one. He took this challenge head-on, and he has overcome every obstacle that the NFL has to offer."
Oher finished second in the voting for the Associated Press' NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year. Perhaps more importantly, his hard work gained the Ravens' confidence.
That dependability was one of the reasons the Ravens decided to move often-injured Jared Gaither from left to right tackle, which allowed Oher to shift to the left side (called "the blind side").
"A left tackle has got to be a guy that's consistent," Cameron said. "Guys who are consistent, you trust. And I have great trust in Michael, and I think everyone else does, too."
The Ravens learned they could trust Oher from his first preseason game last year, when he knocked off his helmet and opened a gash on his forehead in delivering a hit on the Washington Redskins' Renaldo Wynn. After getting three stitches, Oher was back on the field.
The team also found out Oher doesn't back down from anyone when he rebounded from two false starts against the Minnesota Vikings' Jared Allen and slowed down one of the NFL's top pass rushers in the second half. Oher has attacked the Ravens' offseason workouts the same way. A fixture at team headquarters, Oher looks as strong and agile as an NBA forward.
"He's looked great, he really has," Ravens coach John Harbaugh said. "His body, the work he's done, you can see it when he comes out here."
Harbaugh added: "He's moving really well. When a guy is here every single day throughout the offseason, getting all that work and all those reps, it shows."
While Gaither continues to miss practices with back spasms, Oher further establishes himself as the Ravens' left tackle day after day. Some of the best one-on-one battles during camp have been between Oher and Terrell Suggs.
"He's very patient," Suggs said. "You wouldn't expect him to be that far ahead in his game in only his second year."
Oher is not your average 24-year-old. He certainly doesn't eat like one. His plate is typically filled with fruits and vegetables. He'll cheat once a week and eat a cookie.
"I just want to be the best player I can be," Oher said. "I'm just here to work every day and play in the NFL as long as possible and be great at what I do."
Oher does have a youthful side. He defended his favorite NBA team, the Boston Celtics, on Twitter against teammates who jumped onto the Los Angeles Lakers' bandwagon during the NBA Finals. And turning on MTV Jams is the only way to wake him up in the morning.
Still, his biggest love is football. He can't remember the last time he missed a practice. Asked whether there was a time when he almost didn't suit up, Oher said, "I've had broken bones before, but you just have to keep going."
Moving forward is important for Oher, who rarely discusses the "The Blind Side." Teammates hope there will be a day when people will remember Oher more for his accomplishments on the field than for being depicted on the movie screen.
"Michael has moved on from that," Harbaugh said. "It's a part of who he is, and it's so much of what's made him what he is today for all the positive things. But for Michael, it's where he's going. I think that's what he's interested in focusing on."
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