For the first season, Joe turned whines into wins. A previous season's 5-11 record flipped to 11-5 with Flacco leading the helm. Cue the Wacco for Flacco signs! Honestly, I'm surprised no one capitalized on selling novelty purple Flacco unibrows. Baltimore fans would have bought anything. I admit, the kid has talent. In a time-warped QB combine, Flacco would probably crush the previous "talent" of the Ravens. That being said, remember that's not saying much.
Joe's second season was rocky. You check the stats, and he improved. You check the game tape, you can thank Joe's supporting cast. Joe is the Keanu Reeves of the NFL. He's one note, pretty mediocre, surprises you once in a while, but doesn't deliver the star performance. Joe looked good on paper, and he good for 3 important reasons:
1) Rex Ryan left the Ravens. For seasons, fans knew that a weak offense could count on a strong defense to back them up. Losing Ryan required the Ravens to make their offense more reliable if they wanted to win games. Which leads us to...
2) A strong O-line. A chicken or the egg scenario. A strong O-line helped Flacco in the pocket. He had more time, less pressure, and it gave him confidence in the pocket. They made it easy on him.
3) Ray Rice. The kid had over 1300 rushing yards and 700 receiving yards. Rice exploded onto the field and gave the offense the dependability it needed. Of course Joe Flacco looked good, Rice was his Visa Card- everywhere he wanted to be.
With his third season on the line, Flacco has delivered a lackluster performance. The Ravens defense has shown its age this year, the O-line tends to crumble, and Ray Rice can't find the open holes and open field he once could. Simply put, Joe got spoiled, and so did the fans. When pressured, he can't handle the quick decisions. He stares down his receivers, scrambles to make plays, and his back foot seems to be planted into the ground with every release. Joe looks like he's just treading water this season. Call it poor play calling, call it offensive issues, but all the things people expected of Joe can't be delivered. I hate Peyton Manning, Tom Brady, and don't even get me started on Roethlisberger. But you know what, they're great players. A good quarterback needs to provide stability, options, and leadership. Joe hasn't learned that yet. Maybe he will get there, but he's not there yet.
Baltimore- I love you, but set your bar a little higher. Yes, mediocre is better than awful. But great is still better than mediocre. If you want to earn my title of franchise quarterback, you want to lead my team for the next however many years, you better be great. You have an arsenal of offensive weapons at your disposal, Joe. You better learn how to use them. Until then, I repeat: overrated.
*Disclaimer: As a JMU alum, the fact the Flacco came from Delaware forced me to dislike him before he even stepped foot on the field as a Raven. Maybe it means he had more to prove to me. Either way, my opinion of him remains the same.
