The big decision for Baltimore Ravens center Matt Skura was never about whether he would play this season.
The only uncertainty was where his wife, Emma, would give birth.
After the start date for training camp was finally agreed upon by the NFL and the players' union in late July, the Skura family promptly canceled a scheduled labor induction for that week in Charlotte, North Carolina, and caravanned 6½ hours to Maryland. With Skura in one car with the dog, Emma followed with their 2-year-old daughter, Emerson, driving 450 miles in a fully packed Ford Expedition while nine months pregnant.