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John Harbaugh: Ravens Sticking with Joe Flacco over Lamar Jackson as Starting QB
November 5, 2018
Despite three straight losses, the Baltimore Ravens are apparently not considering a switch at quarterback.
Veteran quarterback Joe Flacco has started every game this season, and that will continue despite the presence of rookie first-round pick Lamar Jackson.
"Joe's played well, so I don't want to get into all of that. We're rolling right now with what we got," head coach John Harbaugh said Monday about a possible change, per Jamison Hensley of ESPN. "Of course, at some point in time, this guy [Jackson] is a quarterback."
The last part is what could drive the eventual change, especially considering Jackson has mostly been used as a gimmick player through the first nine games.
The rookie has played 86 snaps this season, per Pro Football Reference, but has only thrown 12 passes where he totaled 87 yards and a touchdown. He also has 28 rushing attempts for 139 yards and a score while also going out on several routes as a receiver.
Harbaugh noted Monday the team has also thought of giving Jackson a chance to play full series at quarterback.
"Every possibility you have thought of, we've considered," the coach said, per Hensley.
Flacco hasn't been terrible this season, totaling 2,465 passing yards and 12 touchdowns, but his 84.2 quarterback rating ranks just 25th in the NFL, per ESPN. Considering this is almost identical to his career mark of 84.1, it's hard to expect much improvement in the second half of the season.
Meanwhile, the Ravens dominated the Buffalo Bills with a 47-3 win in Week 1 but are averaging just 20.8 points per game since Week 2, which would rank 25th in the NFL over the course of the year.
This has caused Baltimore to fall to 4-5 and third place in the AFC North after looking like a top contender at the start of the year.
Still, Flacco has started every game he was healthy since being drafted in 2008, and the Ravens trust him to turn things around.