Joe Flacco: Why He WON'T Suffer a Sophomore Slump

Now that we've seen that Ravens QB Joe Flacco can play at the NFL level, it's only a matter of consistency. Ravens fans can only hope he doesn't go through an infamous "sophomore slump." Last year, he started every regular season game, throwing for 2,971 yards, 14 touchdowns, and 12 interceptions. The stats don't jump out at you, but they're impressive when you consider that he had one touchdown and seven interceptions in his first five contests, only to throw for 13 touchdowns and just five interceptions his next 11. He became the first rookie to win two road playoff games, and even played in the AFC Championship Game against the eventual Super Bowl Champion Pittsburgh Steelers. People didn't set standards high for him going into the year. First of all, he was a rookie. Rookies--especially quarterbacks--often struggle. On top of that, he was an unknown. Nobody really knew who he was. He's a quarterback coming out of Delaware, so he wasn't exactly the most hyped. Most set the bar low for him, even Ravens fans. But not Flacco. "When you're an NFL quarterback, you have standards that you want to live up to," Flacco said. "And you don't lower them just because you're a rookie. I had my standards set high (last season) and goals I wanted to hit. Just because some people might not have thought I was going to succeed doesn't mean I thought that way." And as expected, he did struggle early. In his first preseason game, he was 0-for-3, fumbled once, was sacked twice, and almost threw an interception, had it not been dropped. He clearly improved over the next three weeks, but he wasn't where he needed to be. Because Troy Smith was sick, Kyle Boller was out for the season, and Todd Bouman wasn't even close to being an NFL starter, the Ravens had no choice to throw Flacco into the fire. He was even a pretty good game manager in the first two games, winning both starts. But after three consecutive losses, it became apparent the Ravens had a rookie on their hands, but not yet an NFL-ready quarterback. The Ravens lost three heartbreaking games. They played a very good game against the Steelers, but lost in overtime, 23-20. The next week, they played another good team, but fell to the undefeated Tennessee Titans, 13-10. And in week six, they played another good team, but this time, the Ravens were crushed, 31-3. Flacco threw three interceptions, and coach John Harbaugh didn't sound too optimistic after the game. "We got what we deserved," the first-year coach said. "That's what happens when we play the way we did." But after that game, Flacco and the Ravens went on a tear. The defense played well, but "Joe The Quarterback" did as well. The Ravens won nine of their final 11, and during the stretch, Flacco threw for 2,127 yards, 13 touchdowns, and five interceptions. The rookie who was used as a "game manager" early was now being unleashed as a quarterback who could attack teams well. The Ravens were suddenly in the playoffs, but Flacco didn't want them to stop there. The Ravens throttled the Dolphins, 27-9, behind Ed Reed's normal two interception, one touchdown game, and beat the Titans in an intense, smashmouth affair, 13-10. "We've been confident in ourselves all year," the first-round draft pick from Delaware said. "It seems like we've been on the road for the longest time. It doesn't matter to us. We're going to go out there and battle the crowd, battle the other team, and give it our best." Last year, Flacco was too busy to be a rookie; he'd rather be the starting quarterback for the Ravens. He proved he can be a very good NFL quarterback. As previously stated, the only question now is: can he keep it up? Yes, he can. If Joe and the Ravens proved anything last year, it was that they can rebound from heartbreaking defeats. For example, after losing three in a row--two by a field goal, one by four touchdowns--the Ravens won four in a row. Following a devastating 30-10 loss to the Giants, the Ravens rebounded by dominating the Eagles, 36-7, Bengals, 34-3, and Redskins, 24-10. Then, in a physical battle for the AFC North, the Ravens lost a depressing game to the Steelers, 13-9, but followed by winning two in a row to clinch the last AFC Wild Card spot. That's one thing Ravens fans, including myself, loved--perseverance. They rebounded from tough losses when some teams would fold, and you hardly could blame them. So I don't see any reason for Joe to dwell on the AFC Championship loss in which Flacco threw three interceptions and the Ravens lost, 23-14. In fact, the Ravens rebounded from far worse losses. In Week 6, they lost to the Colts, 31-3, and proceeded to win four straight. In Week 11, they lost to the Giants, 30-10, and then outscored teams by a score of 94-20 the next three games. And he's looked like his late-season self so far in the preseason. Yes, it's preseason. The records are irrelevant. But Joe was still going against starters. He went against the Redskins starters, and on two drives, went 9-for-15 with 105 yards and led two scoring marches. In a Monday Night game against the Jets, his accuracy was off, at least statistically, as he went 8-for-18, but he had 120 yards, and led the Ravens to a touchdown on a Statue of Liberty play. And in Week 3, he torched the Panthers' first team secondary, going 23-of-28 with 247 yards and a touchdown. Combined on the preseason, Flacco is 40-of-61 with 472 yards, one touchdown, and no interceptions, boasting a 94.4 quarterback rating. And yes, it's preseason. I'm well aware. But also, remember: he was going against first team defenses. All the Redskins starting defensive players played, including all four defensive backs in safeties LaRon Landry and Chris Horton, along with corners DeAngelo Hall and Fred Smoot. It was the same deal against the Jets. While Darrelle Revis didn't play, Lito Sheppard--an All Pro in 2006--did, along with Dwight Lowery, who is due to break out this year. And in Flacco's dominant performance against Carolina, both starting corners (Richard Marshall and Chris Gamble) started. It's pretty clear that hiring offensive coordinator Cam Cameron during the 2008 offseason was a smart move. While Flacco deserves a ton of credit, Cam has a history of developing sound quarterbacks, i.e. Philip Rivers, Drew Brees. In 2006, Rivers' first year as a starter, he threw for nearly 3,400 yards, 22 touchdowns, and nine interceptions, leading San Diego to an NFL-best 14-2 record. And he hasn't looked back. Brees is obviously an elite QB, with over 26,000 career yards and 168 touchdowns. Will the same be done for Flacco? I doubt it. But a sophomore slump? Not likely.