With the 18th-overall pick in the first round of the 2008 draft, the Baltimore Ravens selected quarterback Joe Flacco out of Delaware.
With his 6'6", 230-pound frame, Flacco was deemed the next Ben Roethlisberger. His impressive arm strength earned him the nickname "Bazooka" Joe.
The Ravens announced that he was to be the quarterback of the future after Steve McNair's retirement. The plan was to give him a bit of preseason action before benching him and handing him a clipboard so he could learn.
Instead, first and second-string quarterbacks Kyle Boller and Troy Smith were stricken with an injury and an illness heading into the regular season. New Coach John Harbaugh made the decision that he would start Flacco.
Now, we sit at the halfway mark of the season, and the Baltimore Ravens are perched in second place in the AFC North with a surprising 5-3 record.
Flacco's stats as of now are as follows:
QB rating: 75.6
Completion-Passes: 136-220
Pct: 61.8
Yards: 1,464
TD-INT: 5-7
Arm Strength: A
"Bazooka" Joe is definitely an accurate nickname for this rookie. He has thrown some impressive bombs in multiple games that have helped stretch the defense and open up the running game.
Accuracy: C
As you can see from his 61.8 completion percentage, he has average accuracy. However, he's still shaking off the rookie effect and appears to be steadily improving as he gets more and more starts.
Mobility: B
In Week One against the Bengals, Flacco had an impressive 38-yard run that resulted in a rushing touchdown, the first of his career. On average, he'll scramble out of the pocket for positive yardage, three or four times a game. He has also shown some ability to move around in the pocket to avoid hits or sacks and extend the play.
Poise: A+
Absolutely the one shining characteristic of this first-year starter. Even when facing tough defensive fronts like Pittsburgh and Tennessee, Flacco has shown great poise and confidence in the pocket. He will stand and throw even when he knows a big hit is coming. I believe his poise will be the building block from which he may ascend into an elite quarterback.
Decision Making: D+
By far the one glaring weakness of this quarterback has been his decision making. Let me be clear that this grade will go up as the season progresses. Right now, Flacco still struggles to throw the ball away when he needs to.
His seven interceptions have been mostly his fault and sometimes it almost seems like he was intentionally throwing to the defender (though he obviously wasn't). If he can work on throwing the ball away instead of trying to force throws, his interception count will go down.
Ability to Read the Defense: C-
Flacco is still young, so he obviously can't be expected to be some great playcaller like Peyton Manning, who can audible his way out of just about any defensive formation. Flacco's hurry-up offense leaves something to be desired, but this is a quality quarterbacks gain as they gain experience.
Within a year or two, Flacco will better learn to recognize what the defense is doing and take advantage of it.
Overall Grade: B-
Flacco shows a lot of potential and has gone three games now without throwing an interception. In multiple games this season, he has lead his offense down the field and kept his team in games when it mattered most.
If his team manages to get into the playoffs this year, which they very well might, it will give him even more much-needed experience and help with his progression into a mature quarterback.
Until then, thanks for the read and check back in with me for Flacco's postseason grade at the end of the season!
5 comments Last one added 8 months ago — Leave a Comment
Dan McGrain 8 months ago
I have to disagree on a few.
First, I'd say his accuracy is pretty exceptional. 60% completion is a high mark, especially for a rookie quarterback. I'd give him at least a B.
Additionally, I think his decision-making has been pretty good, closer to a C. I think it's his defensive reads that are giving him more trouble.
And as for the overall? At 5-3, showing vast improvement over the last three games (be it against some iffy teams), and showing lots of growth. I say he gets a solid B.
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Sean O'Brien 8 months ago
As far as the decision making goes, his 7 interceptions speak for themselves. Like I said, the second half with see improvement but in the games against the Titans and Colts he made horrible decisions.
In regards to his accuracy, I'm paying more attention to how close his missed throws are. He is improving but I've seen a lot of throws way off. The last 3 games he's been great but this a grade based on how he's done the entire season, not just the last few.
The team is 5-3 because their defense is awesome, make no mistake about that. Flacco is coming around, but he has yet to be a game-winning type of quarterback except against some pretty porous defenses.
We'll see just how well he does in the second half of the schedule, as it is far more difficult.
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Ron Lynn 8 months ago
If the defense had played a little better in the Titans and Steelers game they be 7-1. They were ahead 10-6 in the titans game at the end and gave up a 65 yeard touchdown drive after the terrible call on Terrell Suggs for hitting Collins in the helmet (which on the replay you can see he doesn't, he actually hits his shoulder pad near the helmet). He also led them a long drive in the 4th quater to tie the Steelers game at 20-20 but then in overtime the defense bent a little to much and gave up a decent drive and the game winning field goal. Overall I do agree with most of what you said, but to say they are 5-3 because of their awesome defense is a little misleading. The defense is very good, the run defense is by far the best in the NFL, but the pass defense leaves much to be desired in many ways. I know a lot of that has to do with Rolle and McCallister being out, but still.
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Isaac Barrow 8 months ago
I agree 400.3% man. Yeah early in the year, he would hold the ball for like 12 seconds and then throw a pick. It's getting better, though. Nice read.
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Sean O'Brien 8 months ago
Thanks for the read and the comment Isaac. Our roundtable turned out awesome.
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