It’s Matt Schaub’s turn to play “Next Man Up” for the injury-plagued Ravens…
An MRI confirmed that Flacco has a torn ACL and MCL in his left knee. He will undergo surgery on both ligaments as soon as the swelling goes down, which won’t be within the week. Once Flacco has surgery, he’ll jump into his rehab right away, John Harbaugh said.
“I think it’s probably way early and obviously speculative, but indications that I’ve been given are that he would be back for the start of 2016 training camp, and it wouldn’t be an issue,” Harbaugh said. “However, as we all well know, those are always things that are determined based on how the rehab goes.”
Flacco’s injury ends his streak of 122 straight regular season starts, which was the fifth-longest in NFL history and third-best active streak behind the New York Giants’ Eli Manning (177) and San Diego Chargers’ Philip Rivers (154).
Monday night’s game in Cleveland will mark the first time Harbaugh has ever coached a game in Baltimore without Flacco as his quarterback. The two have been linked ever since they came to the Ravens together in 2008.
“He’s been an iron man,” Harbaugh said. “So this will be a change for all of us, and it will be a challenge for us. It’s a challenge that I wouldn’t say we’re looking forward to, we’d rather that not be the case, but we’re not going to shy away from it.”
“The way technology is, guys bounce back from these things really well, and I have every expectation that he’ll bounce back 100 percent and be stronger than ever and be ready to roll next year and be in great shape like he always is,” Harbaugh said. “That’s a long way away, but right now there’s no reason to think he won’t come back.”
If nothing else, it will be entertaining for Ravens fans to observe whether Matt Schaub can resurrect his QB career in a Ravens uniform over the final 6 games of 2015.
I don’t expect magic, but Schaub is the kind of veteran who has had his ups and downs—but like Carson Palmer, he may have one or two good years left in him— and this is a great chance for Schaub to showcase his desire and ability to continue playing at a high level in the NFL.
“I’m absolutely ready,” Schaub said. “If you’re in this business and you’re in this role and you’re not ready and you get called upon, then you’re doing something wrong. I understand that, and I’ve been ready. I just have to go in there and do my job.”
Schaub, 34, came to Baltimore as an insurance policy in the event the Ravens suffered the loss of Joe Flacco. Schaub had been a starter for much of his 12-year career, but after a couple rough years in Houston and Oakland, he took the opportunity to come to Baltimore and back up one of the NFL’s most durable quarterbacks.
“It was shocking,” Schaub said about hearing of Flacco’s diagnosis. “I hate the circumstances that they’re falling under; I hate that for Joe.
“It’s the nature of this game, yes, but at the same time, you hate to see that [happen] to a player that’s done it for such a long time in this business. I’m excited for this opportunity, that’s what I’m here for and that’s what I came here to do. You’re always one play away, and we’re at that point.”
Schaub hasn’t started a game since 2013 when he was with the Houston Texans. He backed up Derek Carr in Oakland last year, but had seven years as the Texans’ starter prior to that.
He had success in Houston, throwing for more than 4,000 yards in three seasons. He made the Pro Bowl in 2012 and 2009. He also has a strong understanding of the offensive system Baltimore runs, which is virtually the same scheme that he ran in Houston when Gary Kubiak was the head coach.
In the 2015 Ravens preseason, Schaub went 32-of-50 passing for 354 yards with a touchdown and two interceptions.
“Matt Schaub can play quarterback, and he’s going to come in, and he’s going to play very well,” head coach John Harbaugh said. “Everybody out there can talk about how he can’t – those who want to consider themselves amateur evaluators – they can say what they want. It’s OK, we’ll rally behind Matt.”
“I’m very comfortable with Matt,” tight end Crockett Gillmore said.
“Matt Schaub is a veteran in this league,” defensive tackle Brandon Williams said. “He’s got a cannon for his arm and still has a lot of life left, and he’s going to execute the best he can. We support him 100 percent.”
“It’s kind of a new life, new revival for me,” Schaub said. “I’m looking forward to the opportunity to go to battle with these guys. I’m just excited to go to work this week.”
I hope Schaub lights it up against Cleveland on Monday Night Football. But more realistically, I expect him to run the Ravens offense with all its spare parts in an efficient and careful manner. He’s got to show he can bring stability to a team which is massively damaged by injury and he has got to take care of the football in order to squash the killjoy demons which relished his INT-fest at the end of his run in Houston.
People tend to forget, but for a while not so long ago in Houston, Matt Schaub looked like the next Carson Palmer (circa 2015).
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