It’s Put-Up or Shut-Up Time for Average Joe Flacco

Special Commentary by PalmerSucks

January 20, 2012

 

 

Average Joe Flacco, the lukewarm one, sure has had a lot to say lately. Here he is scolding the media before the Ravens played the Texans last Sunday:

 

“I’m sure if we win, I’ll have nothing to do with why we won according to you guys. It is what it is.”

 

It sure is! Joe of course responded by going out against the Texans and… having nothing to do with why the Ravens won.But c’mon bud – I’m sure they gave you plenty of credit for that epic 2-yard drive you led, off the gift muffed punt!

 

Of course it’s not the first time Joe’s had his outbursts; first he complained about all the attention Tim Tebow was getting, thendelivered this little speech:

 

“You guys want everybody to be Aaron Rodgers and be Tom Brady, but you guys do realize, those guys’ [teams] don’t run the ball?”

 

THAT’s got to to go over well with the coaching staff in Baltimore, huh? A little cheese to go with that whine? Excuses anyone?Sure those other guys put up great numbers, but THEY’RE not handcuffed to the handoff like I am!

 

But wait, there’s more! Flacco piled on the critics with this little barb:

 

“You guys want an elite quarterback. You have to stop complaining when we go out there and throw the ball 60 times a game.’”

 

Trouble is, Joe, we’ve seen what happens when you pass it that many times a game. In my “I TOLD you Flacco Sucks!” commentary, I detailed the disaster the Ravens enjoyed in Seattle when Flacco threw it 52 times. This was pretty much the same thing that happened in a Monday night upset loss to Jacksonville when the Ravens employed the “Franchise Flacco” strategy.

 

Fast-forward to this week, where Ed Reed called out Flacco for, among other things, getting rattled against the Texans. But doesn’t Ed know that this is the playoffs, otherwise known as “rattle time” for Average Joe Flacco?

 

In his regular-season career, Average Joe has put up these numbers: 80 TDs, 46 INTs, a YPA of 7.06 and a rating of 86. That’s decent, nothing sensational, but respectable. In a word it’s adequate, just like Flacco himself.

 

In the playoffs, however, Flacco’s been nothing short of putrid – here “Average Joe” becomes, well, “Stink-Ass Joe.” How bad is it? Well, let me take a quote from a Sirius Bark article called – yes, really – “Is Joe Flacco the Worst Post-Season QB of All Time?” Keep in mind it’s from 2010, but gives you an idea of how Flacco’s been for most of his playoff life:

 

“In five post-season games, Joe Flacco has an abysmal rating of 46.5.  He has completed 57 of 120 passes (47.5%) for 660 yards.  The Baltimore signal caller has thrown one touchdown and six interceptions.  The Ravens are 3-2 in these games.  The defense and a powerful ground game were able to mask a horrific 4-10, 34 yard, 1 INT performance vs. the New England Patriots in January.”

 

Move over, Tebow, let Joey take over! The QB rating practically drops in half – we’re talking some serious stinkage here. And the playoff YPA? I know running backs with higher per-carry averages! The Ravens, of course, have failed to reach the Super Bowl with Flacco at QB – they’d probably have made it if they’d even gotten an average performance out of Average Joe.

 

For the record, Flacco’s up-to-date playoff numbers don’t improve much:

53% completion rate    6 TDs  7 INTs   5.81 YPA    66.2 Rating

 

So you can understand Reed’s frustration with Flacco. Suggs may defend him in public, but as I’ve said before, that’s in public – what goes on behind the locker-room doors is another matter entirely. (By the way, Suggs should be grateful for Flacco’s performance Sunday, as it took the spotlight off Sizzle’s own disappearing act. Defending Flacco on ESPN is the least he can do.)

 

Now, I understand Reed doing damage control after the fact, and claiming he was just saying this stuff to light a fire under Flacco. I believe him even – it’s just only part of the truth.

 

I think Reed’s simply holding Flacco to a higher standard re: his playoff performances, because, after all, if your goal is to win a ring, your worth as a player is weighted toward the post-season. (Just ask the voters who put Lynn Swann in the Hall of Fame.)Reed’s motivating, but he’s also expressing a viewpoint that’s probably shared by most of the Ravens’ defensive players – and it’s not a good viewpoint at all.

 

Put it another way: down deep Reed probably realizes that if the Ravens had faced Matt Schaub instead of T.J. (stands for “Turnover Juice,” which is what he must’ve been drinking before the game) Yates, he and Ray-Ray would be out golfing this week. I know I judge a player more on his playoff performance than regular-season – which is why, to me, Joe Flacco has been Joe Floppo. No matter how Ravens fans want to spin it.

 

Anyway, the pressure’s now on Flacco as it never has been before – in fact I think he’s now at a career crossroads. Guys like Reed and Ray Lewis are beyond the point of being up in age – the window’s about closed. Should the Ravens lose Sunday, they’ll all be saying what Woodley did last summer: namely, that the Ravens will never get to the Super Bowl in his lifetime – and they sure won’t ever get there with Flacco as their quarterback.

 

Now, I make no secret of my disgust and hatred of“Ravens’ football,” which is how they explain how the team can be leading 17-3 while the QB has gone 4-for-12 for 80 yards. As much as I hate New England, the thought of Flacco riding to the Bowl on the backs of Ray Rice and the defense makes me want to vomit. And frankly, I’d find it totally entertaining to hear the Baltimorons whine yet again about Average Joe, the playoff choker. (Palmer’s note: Sunday’s game is actually a no-win situation: one of the game’s two greatest free-riders will be going to the Super Bowl, either Flacco or Chad “I Couldn’t Get it Done in Cincy” Ochostinko.)

 

However, even the worst can reverse – witness Alex Smith and his see-saw win over New Orleans. Formerly called “Alice” by 49ers fans, he’s now the toast of the town. Flacco now has his own chance to shut up guys like me, and the table is set – he’ll face the lowly New England defense. If there’s a group to pad your stats against, this is it. There are no more excuses to be made. The 12-for-26, 150-yard specials won’t cut it any more–and no more depending on those freak Rice 51-yard TDs to bail you out, either.

 

It’s up to you, now Average Stink-Ass Joe – it’s time to put up, or shut up, for good.