For years fans and media have debated the status of Quarterback Joe Flacco among other signal callers in the NFL. Is he elite or not?
(You can discuss this on the BSL Board here.)
Personally I don’t care for the overused term or if it applies to the Ravens highest paid player. I know that the Ravens can win with him under center and that he often plays his best when the tournament is on. I won’t go so far as Head Coach John Harbaugh did in calling him the “NFL’s Best Quarterback” but he is one of the best post-season performers in league history.
Just take a look at some of these numbers:
*Flacco is now 10-4 in the playoffs, which means he has twice as many victories as any other quarterback since 2008 when he was drafted.
*He’s thrown 166 consecutive passes in the playoffs without an interception (4th longest streak in NFL playoff history behind Drew Brees/Joe Montana/Steve Young)
*His 7 post-season road wins are two more than any other Quarterback in league history.
Last night he showed again why he received a huge contract a few years ago as he helped lead the Ravens to a 30-17 victory over the Steelers in the AFC Wild Card round. He was 18 of 29 throwing for 259 yards and two touchdowns and has the Ravens set up in familiar territory as they travel to Foxboro to face Tom Brady and the Patriots next Saturday.
A few more thoughts from last night:
- My biggest concern was how the Ravens Offensive Line would be able to handle the Steelers defensive pressure playing two rookies in James Hurst and John Urschel. Flacco was only sacked once and was able to evade pressure as both his touchdown throws were outside the pocket. It wasn’t all pretty as Center Jeremy Zuttah had his issues up front and caused his quarterback to trip twice during the game because he was driven back so quickly. Still the line play was solid overall allowing Flacco to scan the field and giving the running game a chance to be effective too.
- Two months ago Ben Roethlisberger torched the Baltimore secondary so badly that players lost their jobs because of it. Last night the entire defense got a measure of revenge for that whipping sacking Roethlisberger five times and intercepting him twice. The beleaguered secondary played with confidence and aside from one lapse delivered solid coverage and several bone jarring tackles. Rashaan Melvin has helped tremendously stepping in for Jimmy Smith.
- The coaching staff took some deserved criticism over the past few weeks of the regular season but they deserve a ton of praise for last night’s effort. John Harbaugh won yet another opening playoff game (6-0 All-Time) and had his team focused for it’s most complete game of the year. Gary Kubiak’s play calls were aggressive and unpredictable as he used the pass to set up the run. The offense was in attack mode all night. After an early three and out the team drove the ball 80, 70, 59 and 67 yards on their next four possessions, producing two touchdowns and two field goals. They continued to put the pressure on Pittsburgh’s leaky defense. Defensive Coordinator Dean Pees kept the Steelers guessing and used a variety of pressures and coverages. Over the past 19 quarters the defense has given up fifteen field goals and only two touchdowns. Overall the staff out coached the opposition and won the strategic battle.
Matt has lived in Maryland his entire life and is a graduate of Calvert Hall and Towson University. has always been an avid Baltimore sports fan. Since 2007, he has been writing and talking about Baltimore sports, especially the Ravens. His work has appeared on Ravens Gab, Russell Street Report, and he currently co-hosts a podcast “The Blitz- A Ravens podcast” with Brent Harris.