Flacco In The Offseason

[bmorefan444]

So the "third time is a charm" phrase failed us, but if Flacco keeps improving then we'll be back and scarier than ever.

What should Joe be working on in the offseason so that he comes back even better?

My suggestions:

Extending plays with his feet

Quicker decision making

Study habits

[dirtybird10]

I would say getting into a rhythem with his recievers, getting that ball out of his hads quicker, and [i]<being alert>[/i] when he is under pressure (sacking himself on third down)

[1/28/01]

[quote name='bmorefan444' timestamp='1295534037' post='618801']
So the "third time is a charm" phrase failed us, but if Flacco keeps improving then we'll be back and scarier than ever.

What should Joe be working on in the offseason so that he comes back even better?

My suggestions:

Extending plays with his feet

Quicker decision making

Study habits
[/quote]
Getting some different plays called....oh wait, that's not on him

[Jamal]

He really needs to learn how to read defenses.

I guess thats more on Cam since hes really not encouraged to.

[PWNEDbyDEANO]

All around pocket awareness as a general topic. I think he has good accuracy on 95% of his throws, he just needs to be more consistent when it comes to reading defenses and getting the ball out quickly.

If he takes another step like he did this season, I expect we'll see some huge numbers.

[Gtown Purple]

Progressing through his reads faster and getting rid of the football on time.

[EnVy_CaLiBeR]

Seriously, just work on pocket awareness, make quicker decisions, read defenses, and learn to throw the ball away when pressured.

[True]

-Picking up his hot route receiver. It's either his #1 WR is covered or check down to Ray Rice. Flacco needs to find that quick WR to hit in an instant when the pressure is on. (Though I'm sure this will get better if the Ravens run more routes across the middle instead of the outside).

-Pocket presence! Whenever their is pressure around him in the pocket I notice Joe will always look behind him. He has to practice a mental clock in his head that he has at best 3 seconds when the pressure is around him to get rid of the ball.

-Now in his 4th year, he has to be a more part of the offensive game plan. Work on the two minute drill more so he can learn to get some clutch mechanics in himself and also take in the playbook so the coaches have confidence in him to audible.

-Never, under any circumstance, run out of bounds when trying to avoid a sack. Just throw it away Joe!

I can't wait for Flacco fix some of his flaws. He's already playing some great ball in his 3rd year, and won't hit his prime until at least season 6. These improvements should excite fans, not make them question whether he isn't the right choice for QB.

[Ed_Reed20]

An area I truly think he can work on is improving his mechanics to the point where they don't fail him whenever he feels pressure. The throw to Dickson on 4th down that fell short against the Steelers in Week 13 and numerous other throws this season weren't completed simply came down to poor mechanics on Flacco's part.

To me, pocket awareness can't be worked on. Around the league, we think of Brady, Roethlisberger and others as having the best pocket awareness. I'm sure experience has helped them but part of me believes some of what they do is innate.

[FerrariFan87]

Reading defenses and overall Football IQ... moving around in the pocket... running outside of the pocket and [b]throwing the ball away[/b] instead of running out of bounds for a "sack"... lots and lots of film study, especially of teams like the Bengals and Steelers, who own Joe.

[ravensdfan]

[quote name='True' timestamp='1295540926' post='618913']
-Picking up his hot route receiver. It's either his #1 WR is covered or check down to Ray Rice. Flacco needs to find that quick WR to hit in an instant when the pressure is on. (Though I'm sure this will get better if the Ravens run more routes across the middle instead of the outside).

[b]Not to mention if they get an actual speedy WR or use Stallworth. Or maybe if they weren't all running deep routes.[/b]

-Pocket presence! Whenever their is pressure around him in the pocket I notice Joe will always look behind him. He has to practice a mental clock in his head that he has at best 3 seconds when the pressure is around him to get rid of the ball.

[b]I'd look behind me too with our O line. [/b]

-Now in his 4th year, he has to be a more part of the offensive game plan. Work on the two minute drill more so he can learn to get some clutch mechanics in himself and also take in the playbook so the coaches have confidence in him to audible.

[b]This isn't on Joe and Cam is not going to do it unless forced.[/b]

-Never, under any circumstance, run out of bounds when trying to avoid a sack. Just throw it away Joe!

[b]This was an obvious mistake in the Pitt game and one of the 4 bad decisions I put on him in that game but he really does not do this as often as people like to make it seem.[/b]

I can't wait for Flacco fix some of his flaws. He's already playing some great ball in his 3rd year, and won't hit his prime until at least season 6. These improvements should excite fans, not make them question whether he isn't the right choice for QB.

[/quote]

Most of these things you mention are not really so much on Joe. How can he go through his progressions when running for his life or hitting the turf? And as inconsistent as our O line has been, even when he has time, how can he really have confidence to sit there and go through his progressions? I suppose you'd like Joe to make sure the WRs have sure hands in the off-season as well. Or put together a new playbook that includes some quick slants and routes that use the middle of the field. Joe needs to work on some things of course. I really think though, unless we improve our O line [b][i]and [/i][/b]either force Cam out of the status quo or replace him, Joe will be hard pressed to improve dramatically next season.

[Ed_Reed20]

[quote]
This isn't on Joe and Cam is not going to do it unless forced.

[b]True[/b]'s point about "clutch mechanics" [i]is[/i] on Joe. Flacco was certainly clutch at times during the season but came short on some notable occasions too and there were specific plays that had nothing to do with Cam.

This was an obvious mistake in the Pitt game and one of the 4 bad decisions I put on him in that game but he really does not do this as often as people like to make it seem.

[b]It happened too often though. There were times he wasn't even able to make it out of bounds but just kept drifting till he was brought down.

I'm confident we won't see him do it much next season though. [/b]

Most of these things you mention are not really so much on Joe. How can he go through his progressions when running for his life or hitting the turf? And as inconsistent as our O line has been, even when he has time, how can he really have confidence to sit there and go through his progressions? I suppose you'd like Joe to make sure the WRs have sure hands in the off-season as well. Or put together a new playbook that includes some quick slants and routes that use the middle of the field. Joe needs to work on some things of course. I really think though, unless we improve our O line and either force Cam out of the status quo or replace him, Joe will be hard pressed to improve dramatically next season.

[b]There were times Joe didn't go through his progressions quick enough even when there was time. I know for a fact it happened during the second Bengals game. I'm not expecting Joe to be on their level but we've seen Roethlisberger and Rodgers excel despite below average OL play so it [i]can[/i] be done.[/b]
[/quote]

[Milton145]

He needs better vision. Too many times has he missed a wide open receiver.

[PuRock]

[quote name='Milton145' timestamp='1295552671' post='619215']
He needs better vision. Too many times has he missed a wide open receiver.
[/quote]

Yep. Quicker reads while he goes through his progressions.

[Bltravens]

I just want him to go through his progressions faster, not even necessarily pre snap reads. Often at times he waits on a WR to get separation like its going to happen eventually, screw em, if their not open right away dont wait on it unless its a max protect called deep shot. If its just a normal play call with various depth routes, go through your progression, if the guy has no semblance of separation, move on to the next guy, dont wait on him. Make it perfectly clear to the WRs that if they aren't going to get open quickly, theyre not getting the ball.

[PuRock]

[quote name='Bltravens' timestamp='1295553270' post='619239']
I just want him to go through his progressions faster, not even necessarily pre snap reads. [b]Often at times he waits on a WR to get separation like its going to happen eventually, screw em, if their not open right away dont wait on it unless its a max protect called deep shot.[/b] If its just a normal play call with various depth routes, go through your progression, if the guy has no semblance of separation, move on to the next guy, dont wait on him. Make it perfectly clear to the WRs that if they aren't going to get open quickly, theyre not getting the ball.
[/quote]

Yep, its almost like he imagines they'll get open soon enough. Meanwhile Todd Heap is standing wide open. Like you said, If you look and the guy and he isn't open RIGHT now, move on.

[Ed_Reed20]

[quote name='PuRock' timestamp='1295553490' post='619254']
Yep, its almost like he imagines they'll get open soon enough. Meanwhile Todd Heap is standing wide open. Like you said, If you look and the guy isn't open RIGHT now, move on.
[/quote]

Yep. That's exactly what happened on the play that stalled a drive, except Boldin was the one that was open.

[FerrariFan87]

Oh yeah, and no more Pizza Hut or First Mariner Bank commercials.... they're just awful haha...

[bmore_07]

I would say everything - including taking a backseat to Bulger (or any other QB for that matter). Ravens going nowhere with Flacco...

[theblackdog]

[quote name='bmorefan444' timestamp='1295534037' post='618801']
My suggestions:

Extending plays with his feet
[/quote]

I hear Rex Ryan can help with that

Seriously, Flacco needs to build his awareness and speed with spotting open WRs, and to be allowed to call audibles. I hope he studies lots and lots of game film from this year and watches to see what the Bengals, Steelers, and Patriots do that get them down the field against us, and learns to be able to read their defenses quicker.

[Perfekt]

Wow I was going to comment but you pretty much nailed it guys. Flacco is right there but needs that extra push to become elite. Since were stuck with Cam for another year tho I dont expect much.

[Jamal]

I don't think Flacco needs to learn how to extend plays necessarily, unless you mean learning how to step up in th pocket, which all falls into the pocket awareness.

I think hes strictly a pocket passer. Sure he can move around, but that decreases his accuracy.

[bdravens]

It's not the most important thing, but I really wish his dropbacks were quicker. I watch guys like Drew Brees and Philip Rivers, and it just seems like they finish their dropback in about half the time Flacco does. This would in turn help him with reads, and give him more time. IDK if anyone else notices it, but it just seems slow to me.

[AsianRice]

[quote name='bdravens' timestamp='1295567641' post='619613']
It's not the most important thing, but I really wish his dropbacks were quicker. I watch guys like Drew Brees and Philip Rivers, and it just seems like they finish their dropback in about half the time Flacco does. This would in turn help him with reads, and give him more time. IDK if anyone else notices it, but it just seems slow to me.
[/quote]

Yeah, he needs to work on his footwork. Quicker dropback can save him time to make throws.

[Ed_Reed20]

[quote name='Jamal' timestamp='1295563843' post='619533']
I don't think Flacco needs to learn how to extend plays necessarily, unless you mean learning how to step up in th pocket, which all falls into the pocket awareness.

[b]I think hes strictly a pocket passer. Sure he can move around, but that decreases his accuracy.[/b]
[/quote]

Throwing on the move is another thing he could stand to improve. I remember his TD pass to Boldin against the Steelers. It was one of his better plays on the season but I remember he had to come to a stop before making the throw. The same thing happened on the throw to Heap that was picked off against the Bengals in the final week.

[quote name='bdravens' timestamp='1295567641' post='619613']
It's not the most important thing, but I really wish his dropbacks were quicker. I watch guys like Drew Brees and Philip Rivers, and it just seems like they finish their dropback in about half the time Flacco does. This would in turn help him with reads, and give him more time. IDK if anyone else notices it, but it just seems slow to me.
[/quote]

I have noticed it's slow at times. I really think Joe's height hurts him in that regard but foot speed can obviously be improved.

[HaX]

I just want him to not have to run for his like 90% of the game, we need a consistent OL

[ryan23945]

u would think he would have quicker reads if he was allowed to study images in game, teams game plan for other teams, if u run a 3 wr set on 3rd down ur not gonna see 20 different defensive sets all game, hes gotta be able to know where guys r gonna b on the d, depending on what formation the offence is in, that comes from studying in game and week before

[Greatness]

Let me preference this by saying I swear by Joe Flacco and believe he'll be a Super beast very soon.

1) Hitting Receivers in stride.
- Too many times Receivers had to slowdown and catch an under-thrown pass which could have lead to a walk-in TD.

2) Stop throwing the ball so high.
- A lot of the time the Receivers must jump for the ball and when they do, the corners and safeties are already closed in on the Receiver.

3) Extend the play
- You did it your rookie season. What happened? Rollout! Throw the ball away, etc.

4) Kick people where it hurts
-This is your team. Tell people they are frauds. Tell Cam we aren't going to let All-Pro Safeties come unblocked off the line. Tell your WR's to shutup and get back in the huddle, etc.

5)Work on getting a ring in Baltimore for the 2011 season...harder.

[Jabara]

[quote name='Ed_Reed20' timestamp='1295544958' post='619001']
An area I truly think he can work on is improving his mechanics to the point where they don't fail him whenever he feels pressure. The throw to Dickson on 4th down that fell short against the Steelers in Week 13 and numerous other throws this season weren't completed simply came down to poor mechanics on Flacco's part.

To me, pocket awareness can't be worked on. Around the league, we think of Brady, Roethlisberger and others as having the best pocket awareness. I'm sure experience has helped them but part of me believes some of what they do is innate.
[/quote]
I agree with you on this point and wanted to add that there have been glimpses of Flacco becoming elite in a sense.
It is the eye test that I look to in order to judge a QB of being elite or not.
The pass I'm referring to, among other plays or throws, is an example from the last game against the Steelers when Joe ran and leaped to his right and while in the air completed a beautiful pass to Heap.
That play alone opened my eyes to his true potential.
And speaking on that makes me think that he is either being held back and not being asked to make those types of throws, or that he is finally becoming comfortable in his role.
Once Cam, who may be extra hard on allowing his QB's to [i]grace[/i] his playcalling,
sees that Flacco can make those throws and shows that sense of awareness, maybe Cam will open the playbook even more, change the scheme a bit, and gamble on Flacco's decisions and abilities.

I think one thing the fans see that perhaps Cam didn't want to gamble on, or couldn't live up to, is putting it all out there in order to allow Joe to either get us to, and win the SB, or to fail miserably and have to deal with the pain of a young QB and how that could effect him and the team, let alone his or their jobs.

I've heard rumors that Cam and Harbs were about to bench Flacco in the first Bengals game and the Falcons game, but Zorn talked them out of it...

[Hjulmann]

Audibles. Audibles, audibles, AUDIBLES!

Champions are made in the off-season