Biography

BIOGRAPHY

Matt Skura was born on February 17th, 1993, in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. He is a center in the NFL. In his early years, Skura attended Worthington Kilbourne High School where he was listed as the No. 13 center in the nation by ESPN.com. He was a team captain as a senior. He was an all-metro choice by the Columbus Dispatch in 2010 and a two-time all-conference selection. He was selected to play in the annual Ohio North-South All-Star Classic on April 23rd, 2011, in Columbus, Ohio and was chosen to the Ohio roster for the annual Big 33 All-Star Game on June 18th, 2011, in Hershey, Pa.

After he finished high school, Skura committed to the University of Duke where as a freshman in 2012, he played in 10 games playing primarily as an offensive guard. He helped the Blue Devils rank second in the ACC in sacks allowed per pass attempt and was part of a Duke offense that ranked 4th among the ACC leaders in first downs per game, 4th in time of possession with 31:07, 5th in passing yards per game with 283.9, and 5th in points per game with 31.5. He helped in the protection of 3,000-yard passer Sean Renfree with 3,113 as Duke became just the second team in ACC history to have two 1,000-yard receivers in Jamison Crowder with 1,074 and Conner Vernon with 1,074. As a sophomore in 2013, Skura started all 14 games at center and was a key component of Duke’s offensive front that ranked first in the ACC in sacks allowed per passing attempt. He was part of a Blue Devil offensive unit that established school single-season records for total first downs with 298, offensive yards with 5,966 and points with 459. Skura was also a member of Duke’s offense that ranked 4th among the ACC leaders in total offense with 426.1, 5th in scoring with 32.8, 5th in rushing with 178.0,  and 6th in passing with 248.1. He helped the Blue Devils to top-50 national offensive rankings for fourth-down conversion percentage finishing 8th with .696, 12th in fewest fumbles lost with 6, 25th in fewest penalties per game with 4.57, 32nd in fewest penalty yards per game with 40.71, 36th in first downs with 298, and 50th in passing offense. He also helped a Duke offensive unit that became the first in school history and one of just four in the ACC in 2013 to amass 25+ rushing and 25+ passing TDs. 

As a junior in 2014, Skura was a third-team All-ACC selection by the Atlantic Coast Sports Media Association, was an honorable mention All-ACC pick by the league’s head coaches, and was a co-ACC Offensive Lineman of the Week following Duke’s 20-13 win over Virginia. He was a recipient of the Sonny Falcone Iron Duke Award, a team honor presented annually to one offensive player, one defensive player and one player in the developmental program for their year-round commitment to strength training and conditioning. Skura started all 13 games at center and was a member of Duke’s offensive line which led the nation in fewest tackles for loss allowed per game with 3.15. He was a key component of an offensive front that ranked first in the ACC in sacks allowed per passing attempt and second in the league in sacks allowed per game with 1.00. In his senior season in 2015, Skura was a second-team All-America selection by USA Today, fourth-team Phil Steele and Sports Illustrated HM. He started all 13 games and helped the Blue Devils finish third in the ACC in total offense, fifth in scoring offense, fifth rushing offense and fifth in passing offense as Duke joined Clemson and North Carolina as the only schools to rank among the top five in all four categories. He was also part of an offensive front that ranked second in the ACC and sixth nationally in fewest tackles for loss allowed per game with 4.15 and was a key member of an offense that matched the school single-season standard with eight games with 30+ points, equaling the record set in both 2012 and 2013. 

After he graduated from college, Skura entered the 2016 NFL Draft where he was signed by the Baltimore Ravens as an undrafted free agent on May 6th, 2016. He was waived on September 3rd, 2016, and was signed to the practice squad the next day. On January 2nd, 2017, he signed a reserve/future contract with the Ravens. On September 2nd, 2017, Skura was waived by the Ravens and was later re-signed to the practice squad. e was promoted to the active roster on September 19th, 2017. Skura started 12 games at right guard for the Ravens in 2017 in place of the injured Marshal Yanda, missing two games due to a knee injury. After Ryan Jensen departed in free agency, Skura was named the starting center in 2018, where he started all 16 games. In 2019, Skura started the first 11 games at center before suffering a season-ending knee injury in Week 12 against the Los Angeles Rams and was placed on injured reserve the following day. The Ravens did, however, go on to win that game, 45–6. Skura's team would go on to finish 14-2 and lose to the 6th seeded Tennessee Titans in the Divisional Round 28-12. Skura re-signed on a one-year restricted free agent tender on April 10, 2020. He was placed on the active/physically unable to perform list at the start of training camp on August 2, 2020. He was activated on August 16, 2020. In Week 10 against the New England Patriots, Skura's snaps led to three botched quarterback-center exchanges during the 23–17 loss. He was placed on the reserve/COVID-19 list by the team on November 25, 2020, and activated on December 4.