Jackson takes reins for Ravens
Flacco is healthy, but Baltimore is ‘rolling’ with rookie quarterback
OWINGS MILLS, MD.— As he worked diligently for more than a month to return from a potentially dangerous hip injury, Joe Flacco watched the Baltimore Ravens flourish without him.
Now that he’s healthy and able to practice at full capacity , Flacco must adjust to a role he’s never experienced during his11year NFL career: backup quarterback.
Ravens coach John Harbaugh on Wednesday selected rookie Lamar Jackson as his starter, opting to play the hot hand rather than a former Super Bowl MVP who’s been starting since his inaugural season in 2008.
After Flacco hurt his right hip in a loss to Pittsburgh on Nov 4, the fleet-footed Jackson took over as the starter following a bye week. Under his guidance, the Ravens ramped up their running game and went 3-1, the only loss in overtime last Sunday on the road against the powerful Kansas City Chiefs.
With Baltimore desperate to end a three-year playoff drought, Harbaugh decided the Ravens would be best served with Jackson behind centre.
“Every decision is based on making us the strongest possible team we can be,” Harbaugh said. “Whether it’s quarterback or defensive line, that’s the bottom line. That’s what it boils down to. That’s how we feel about this decision, and we’re rolling.”
Jackson will start Sunday when the Ravens (7-6) host Tampa Bay (5-8).
The 33-year-old Flacco has guided the Ravens into the playoffs on six occasions. He was Super Bowl MVP in 2012, when he led Baltimore past San Francisco to cap a post-season in which he threw11touchdown passes and no interceptions.
But Flacco realized his future in Baltimore would be in jeopardy as soon as the Ravens selected Jackson out of Louisville, Ken., with the 32nd overall pick in April.
“They drafted Lamar in the first round. At some point, something was going to happen between the two of us,” Flacco said.
Flacco retained the starting job until he banged up his hip against the Steelers. He finished the game and wanted to play in the next one, but the doctors wouldn’t allow it.
“The risks of going back out there and playing were just a lot,” Flacco said. “If I just let it play the course and get to where we are today, the risks are nothing.”
With Jackson running the offence, the Ravens have racked up an NFL-best 914 yards rushing over the past four weeks. More importantly, they’ve won three of four to put themselves in the middle of the playoff picture. Baltimore trails Pittsburgh by a half-game in the AFC North and currently holds the No. 6 wild-card spot.
Jackson’s 336 yards rushing are the most by a rookie quarterback in his first four starts during the Super Bowl era. Still, one misstep could put an end to his run of success.
“They always tell me to protect myself, but I’m going to put it all on the line. I want to win,” said Jackson, who won the Heisman Trophy in 2016.
Harbaugh and Flacco have been a team since the quarterback entered the league as a first-round pick soon after Harbaugh was named Baltimore’s coach. They’ve won 15 playoff games together and hoisted the Super Bowl trophy.
So, it was probably a bit uncomfortable for both when Harbaugh called Flacco into his office Tuesday afternoon.
“I don’t know if it was the hardest conversation,” Flacco said, “because in both of our minds we probably knew that the talk was coming at some point.”