Baltimore Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco might be one of the most criticized franchise quarterbacks of his time. Somehow, Flacco managed to stand out enough during his time at the University of Delaware and became a first-round pick in 2008. He was named the Rookie of the Year and also has a Super Bowl victory/MVP accolade under his belt.
Still to this day, Flacco cannot, and will not, be called elite by a majority of the public. Okay, so maybe he isn’t Tom Brady or Aaron Rodgers. But Flacco has had his days. While his most recent days at 33-years-old have been bad more often than not, he is still a reliable quarterback, which is hard to find nowadays for some teams.
Everybody thought that this year was it for Flacco. There was a handful of potential franchise quarterback’s to pick from in the 2018 NFL Draft, and the Ravens had to get in on the action.
So as they sat with the 25th overall pick and Lamar Jackson left on the board, everybody was shocked to find out that the Ravens called tight end Hayden Hurst instead. It wasn’t until the final pick of the first round when the Ravens made a call to the Philadelphia Eagles to get back in the game and take Lamar Jackson. At that point, everybody would assume that Flacco’s days are numbered. Little did everybody know, ever since Jackson’s arrival, Flacco has been a better quarterback.
Jackson Made Flacco Better?
Usually, you would expect a veteran quarterback to help out the rookie. In this case, Jackson’s presence might’ve made Flacco, a better quarterback. Maybe Flacco needed the pressure. Typically, a veteran quarterback’s who’s position on the depth chart is in jeopardy tend to fold in this situation and lose out. Not Joe Flacco, though. Not a proven Super Bowl MVP.
It’s not like Flacco is just getting by either. Look at the numbers. He’s pretty much within the top-ten of every category around the league. And in comparison to last year’s start that had everybody calling for the end of Flacco, he’s a brand new man.
Joe Flacco, first 4 games of 2017: 601 yards, 65.0 passer rating
Joe Flacco, first 4 games of 2018: 1,252 yards, 96.9 passer rating pic.twitter.com/nOVbsSaQEV— Pro Football Reference (@pfref) October 1, 2018
Lamar Jackson-less Flacco and Flacco with Jackson, numbers are like night and day. The Ravens are rolling right now. As they just defeated the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday Night Football, they are placed second in the surprisingly tough AFC North with a record of 3-1.
Right now, the Ravens look like a playoff team. Joe Flacco is doing his thing. Whether he’s elite in the eyes of the public or not, his progress in 2018 is undeniable. Can he keep it up? That remains to be seen. But we have to at least acknowledge how much better of a quarterback Flacco has been with his extra pinch of motivation that is currently sitting behind him.
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