"i Am An Elite Quarterback" --- Joe Flacco ---

[FerrariFan87]

Joe's not elite.

[ravensdfan]

[quote name='FerrariFan87' timestamp='1295353065' post='614740']
Joe's not elite.
[/quote]

No, he's not. I think people expecting him to be so at this point in time though is off the mark though which was the point of the comparison.

[HarleypsychRN]

Joe's a franchise QB obviously, but until he can take over a game like Aaron Rodgers, Brady, Manning or Rivers...nah don't think so. He hasn't done that yet. Throwing for 400 yards in a game doesn't in and of intself make someone an "elite" QB but it sure helps make the agrument.

[PuRock]

Tom Brady is 0-3 in his last three playoff games. Tom Brady isn't elite by all logic.

[HarleypsychRN]

[quote name='PuRock' timestamp='1295358557' post='614820']
Tom Brady is 0-3 in his last three playoff games. Tom Brady isn't elite by all logic.
[/quote]
Wanna see his Super Bowl Rings? Cheesh....

[PuRock]

[quote name='HarleypsychRN' timestamp='1295365224' post='614987']
Wanna see his Super Bowl Rings? Cheesh....
[/quote]

I know, I was just making a sarcastic point.

Playoffs are tough. Ask Tom, 0-3 in last three. And he is an elite QB.

[3-4ravdef509]

Unless you're Clayton from ESPN, everyone knows that Flacco isn't elite yet. He's won 4 playoff games, only playing well in 2 of them, and losing 3 others. Among his other problems though, his deep ball isn't as accurate as it was when he was a rookie (odd), his footwork varies all the way to spectacular to non-existent, and he consistently has problems beating 2 teams in our division: Pittsburgh and Cincinatti.
But let's put some things into perspective. He did come from a small college, so ofcourse there was gona be a period of growing pains for the rookie. Yet, despite that he has managed to throw more TDs than INTs 3 years in a row, increasing his TD total every year. This year we saw more clutch moments out of him, during the Browns, Pittsburgh, and Atlanta games. And we all know Cameron isn't what anyone wants in terms of offensive coordinating. Much of Flacco's problems may stem from playing in a broken system, devoid of the weapons to actually execute the gameplan properly. (By proper weapons, I mean a legitimate deep threat and stable offensive line.)
So what I'm getting at is this. We all know this guy is the best we ever had. And we have won a superbowl and many a game without a decent qb behind center. So idk why people continue to rag on him on and on. Elite or not, he's realistically our best route to the Lombardi Trophy. And it's a team sport. No one game can be put enitrely on Flacco for it's outcome, win or lose. He's made steady progress since he's been here, so stop focusing just on the negatives. Ask Peyton Manning, Terry Bradshaw, Eli Manning, Troy Aikmen, and a number of other quarterbacks how long it took them and how much they struggled and were criticized on the path to glory.

And then consider this...
It could always be worse.

[PWNEDbyDEANO]

[quote name='3-4ravdef509' timestamp='1302095677' post='662476']
Unless you're Clayton from ESPN, everyone knows that Flacco isn't elite yet. He's won 4 playoff games, only playing well in 2 of them, and losing 3 others. Among his other problems though, his deep ball isn't as accurate as it was when he was a rookie (odd), his footwork varies all the way to spectacular to non-existent, and he consistently has problems beating 2 teams in our division: Pittsburgh and Cincinatti.
But let's put some things into perspective. He did come from a small college, so ofcourse there was gona be a period of growing pains for the rookie. Yet, despite that he has managed to throw more TDs than INTs 3 years in a row, increasing his TD total every year. This year we saw more clutch moments out of him, during the Browns, Pittsburgh, and Atlanta games. And we all know Cameron isn't what anyone wants in terms of offensive coordinating. Much of Flacco's problems may stem from playing in a broken system, devoid of the weapons to actually execute the gameplan properly. (By proper weapons, I mean a legitimate deep threat and stable offensive line.)
So what I'm getting at is this. We all know this guy is the best we ever had. And we have won a superbowl and many a game without a decent qb behind center. So idk why people continue to rag on him on and on. Elite or not, he's realistically our best route to the Lombardi Trophy. And it's a team sport. No one game can be put enitrely on Flacco for it's outcome, win or lose. He's made steady progress since he's been here, so stop focusing just on the negatives. Ask Peyton Manning, Terry Bradshaw, [b]Eli Manning[/b], Troy Aikmen, and a number of other quarterbacks how long it took them and how much they struggled and were criticized on the path to glory.

And then consider this...
It could always be worse.
[/quote]

I agree with you on everything but the bold. I either laugh or fume whenever I hear people talk about Eli Manning as elite. The guy's an INT machine who lives off the family name.

[grape drank]

all this is very true, but I'd like to see more than a glimmer of eliteness before we shovel out the big bucks for him. GIve us a show in 2011 Flacco, and you'll get yours! (assuming there is a season)

[darklight1216]

Clayton's group of elite passers is apparently the top ten. I usually go with top five or three, but with his definition, I don't see any problem with putting Flacco in the "elite" category. Obviously some people might swap Flacco for the other Manning, Schaub (for reasons unknown), or maybe Freeman, but putting Joe Flacco in the top ten isn't much of a stretch, in my opinion.

[theFRANCHISE]

I'm not bothered by the elite or non-elite label, I'm just bothered by the premature expectations for a QB that is still maturing. Again, we are all free to criticize, but my issue is that there are still fans who believe that Flacco should already be on the level of a Manning/Brady/Brees just because his stats are on the same [i]pace[/i] as Manning. That's unrealistic.

If you consider that Manning wasn't considered to be universally in that elite tier until his 5th or 6th season, we should be lucky if Flacco can even touch that in Year 4. I still consider this coming season to be the season that will define Flacco's future, but I won't consider him a bust if he can't crack 4,000 yards passing. I won't consider him a bust if he cannot win the Super Bowl this year. I will only consider him a bust if he has more turnovers than touchdowns, and loses games while showing a clear regression in his development.

Remember, we Baltimore fans haven't seen a quality QB since Vinny Testaverde, and before that, Bert Jones and Johnny Unitas. The majority of fans posting here aren't even old enough to have seen Jones and Unitas in their playing days. We don't really know what it's like to develop a QB, so I can understand the impatience involved there. At the same time, if we're to have continued success for decades to come, we must learn and accept the patience involved in this development or else we'll continue shuffling QBs more often than a deck of cards in Vegas.

[izvoodoo]

Considering Flacco played Divison II ball in a spread offense and the fact that the receiving core is one of the slowest I'd say he's played pretty well and certainly seems to be our franchise quarterback.

He's better than a lot of other quarterbacks, and there's been glimpses of greatness, but I'm happy he's here.

[TDubbs]

He may not be at that `elite` level yet like the Bradys and Mannings who control their offenses. But man, are we lucky to have a guy like Flacco as our QB who has played in the playoffs each of his first three years. Its only a matter of time before hes one of the best I feel, he has all the raw physical attributes and a pretty good head on his shoulders.

[theFRANCHISE]

[quote name='izvoodoo' timestamp='1302104251' post='662513']
Considering Flacco played Divison II ball
[/quote]
Minor gripe with that statement: Delaware is Division I-AA (FCS), NOT Division II. Division II is a major step down from Division I-A- and I-AA, as they don't have nearly the same level of funding. Believe me, as a graduating senior here at Delaware, we definitely have more money being pumped into the school than many schools on I-AA and especially Division II.

As an addendum, I should note that, while Division I-AA competition is not the same as I-A, Delaware has played well against some of the mid-range I-A teams throughout the years. UD has also discussed the possibility of jumping to I-A, with the biggest obstacle being Coach Keeler's hesitance to suddenly become a small fish in a big pond when the school's been a big fish in a small pond for decades.

[PWNEDbyDEANO]

[quote name='theFRANCHISE' timestamp='1302107872' post='662539']
Minor gripe with that statement: Delaware is Division I-AA (FCS), NOT Division II. Division II is a major step down from Division I-A- and I-AA, as they don't have nearly the same level of funding. Believe me, as a graduating senior here at Delaware, we definitely have more money being pumped into the school than many schools on I-AA and especially Division II.

As an addendum, I should note that, while Division I-AA competition is not the same as I-A, Delaware has played well against some of the mid-range I-A teams throughout the years. UD has also discussed the possibility of jumping to I-A, with the biggest obstacle being Coach Keeler's hesitance to suddenly become a small fish in a big pond when the school's been a big fish in a small pond for decades.
[/quote]

Did you go to Delaware at the same time as Flacco?

Also, props for the previous post. Spot on.

EDIT: Having re-read your post, I'm now thinking you're still a senior?

I'm confused

[Ravenslifer]

What is elite? Top 3? Top 5? Of course he's not yet, maybe the youngest guy you could put on that list is Aaron Rodgers, who's been in the league three more years than Flacco and was much more pro ready coming out of Cal than Flacco was out of Delaware. People seem to forget that Flacco's only 26 years old. We're comparing a guy in his third year to guys who've been in the league at least 5-6 years, some (Manning, Brady) over ten. Give him another two or three years (and some receivers that fit the system he's trying to play in) and then we'll talk about him being elite. All I know is that he has consistently gotten better over the past three years, and I expect similar growth over this year.

[theFRANCHISE]

[quote name='PWNEDbyDEANO' timestamp='1302108593' post='662547']
Did you go to Delaware at the same time as Flacco?

Also, props for the previous post. Spot on.

EDIT: Having re-read your post, I'm now thinking you're still a senior?

I'm confused
[/quote]
I'm a senior, graduating this semester. I was a freshman when Flacco was a senior, so I've seen him play on Saturdays and had seen him a few times on campus in passing before I even thought he was a big deal.

[Ed_Reed20]

I could care less about labels. I just want to see him continue improve his game, specifically his footwork and speed in making reads.

[RL52TheGreatest]

[quote name='Ed_Reed20' timestamp='1302112898' post='662581']
I could care less about labels. I just want to see him continue improve his game, specifically his footwork and speed in making reads.
[/quote]
Yeah, who cares if he's considered "elite". As long as he keeps getting better to the point where he can eventually lead this team to a Super Bowl then it shouldn't matter what people think of him.

[bpytnjr58]

I have a feeling this will be the break through year for him.....if there is a year!

[SpeedKills]

[quote name='RL52TheGreatest' timestamp='1302113789' post='662587']
Yeah, who cares if he's considered "elite". As long as he keeps getting better to the point where he can eventually lead this team to a Super Bowl then it shouldn't matter what people think of him.
[/quote]

Problem is, a lot of fans have to have the "pretty" win, and if he wins ugly, well....

[Ravens Lover]

give me a Super Bowl ring and I will than concider him in the elite club of QBs, but until them unless he has Marino or Manning passing titles I don't put him eit just yet, Very good yes and I love that we have him as our QB, but not elite

[FerrariFan87]

This is going to be Joe's breakout year... guaranteed.

[Militant X 1]

Joe has great potential.

[Suggs Package]

In terms of winning games, Joe is elite, but when it comes to actual QB production, I'd say he's in between 10-15 top quarterbacks. Clearly better than Garrard, Palmer, Cutler, Orton and Eli, but equal or worse than Romo, Cassell, Schaub, Ryan, and Freeman. I would say Brady, Rodgers, Big Ben, Rivers, Brees, Vick, and Peyton are the elite ones.

This doesn't sound like Flacco to me, more like his agent or something feeding him words to say. I see this thing all the time working in media. As long as he doesn't threaten to holdout or antagonize his teammates, I'm fine with it. Ray Rice should really be the only one complaining since he's really surpassed his rookie contract.

[Hjulmann]

I believe in Joe Flacco. But he's not an elite quarterback until he pulls off a Brady-Manning-Brees-like season.

[RavensFanInCA]

I just saw the video of Joe Flacco in the top 100 current NFL players being narrated by Al Saunders. Hope he's right.
[url="http://www.nfl.com/videos/nfl-network-total-access/09000d5d81f2003f/Top-100-Joe-Flacco"]My link[/url]

[Romo Ravens]

He's not elite, but there are only four QB's in this league who are (Mannning, Brady, Brees, AR). I believe Flacco is more than a game manager, but he has to get over the hump of making silly mistakes and he needs to just go with the flow. It looks like he gets nervous sometimes. He should realize that his fans are with him no matter what, so let the ball fling man.

[berad]

[quote name='RavensFanInCA' timestamp='1302200812' post='663017']
I just saw the video of Joe Flacco in the top 100 current NFL players being narrated by Al Saunders. Hope he's right.
[url="http://www.nfl.com/videos/nfl-network-total-access/09000d5d81f2003f/Top-100-Joe-Flacco"]My link[/url]
[/quote]

Lofty praise from Saunders. He's seen QBs like Dan Fouts, Joe Montana, Trent Green, Rich Gannon, and Kurt Warner play and he says those things about Flacco? It's pretty gratifying...

[Bltravens]

[quote name='Romo Ravens' timestamp='1302202655' post='663032']
He's not elite, but there are only four QB's in this league who are (Mannning, Brady, Brees, AR). I believe Flacco is more than a game manager, but he has to get over the hump of making silly mistakes and he needs to just go with the flow. It looks like he gets nervous sometimes. He should realize that his fans are with him no matter what, so let the ball fling man.
[/quote]
I feel the same way, elite to me is top 5 at your position. And Flacco isn't there right now.