OWINGS MILLS, Md. (AP) -Whether he throws two touchdown passes or two interceptions, leads the Baltimore Ravens to a victory or struggles in a loss, Joe Flacco won’t change his expression or the fashion in which he prepares for the next opponent.
That, and his unwavering resolve to improve, have earned the rookie quarterback the admiration of his teammates.
Flacco was picked off twice and finished with a lackluster 58.1 quarterback rating in last Sunday’s 30-10 loss to the New York Giants, but the look on his face Wednesday provided no hint what happened three days earlier.
His focus was solely on getting ready for the Philadelphia Eagles. The only reason he would feel compelled to look back at the New York game was to learn from his mistakes.
“You’re going to have good games and sometimes you’re not going to have good games. You have to realize that,” Flacco said. “It comes down to how you handle the games you don’t play well in. I guess I’ve been brought up to do a good job of that.”
ced by center Jason Brown.
“In the times he’s seen adversity, Joe has handled it very maturely. I don’t know if he just doesn’t know any better,” Brown said. “It’s like, ‘Hey, don’t you know billions of dollars are at stake here in terms of everybody trying to chase the common goal of a championship?’ He shakes it off and just says, ‘I want to go back to work and get better.’ That’s the best attitude you can have.”
Flacco arrived in Baltimore as a first-round pick out of Delaware. He was installed as the third stringer behind Kyle Boller and Troy Smith, but after Boller sustained a season-ending shoulder injury and Smith was sidelined with infected tonsils, Flacco stepped into the starting spot.
The role took him by surprise, but he had been preparing for it since the first day of training camp.
“Everyone displayed concerns because Joe is a rookie quarterback coming from a small school and nobody knows anything about the young kid. But what you guys in the media didn’t see is, this young man, when he got here in the summer displayed a tremendous work ethic,” Brown said.
“He didn’t treat his career starting out as though he was going to have a redshirt year. He came in acting like a professional and prepared himself as a starter from day one, even though Troy Smith and Kyle Boller were ahead of him. That shows you the type of young man he is.”
, which explains why he’s a more efficient quarterback today than he was when he started the opener against Cincinnati.
“His whole thing is to get better from one Sunday to the next,” Ravens coach John Harbaugh said. “He spends a lot of time in here watching tape. He’s here all day on Tuesday (an off-day for the players). He just works to make himself better.”
The results have been profound. Although Flacco is the 12th-ranked quarterback in the AFC, he’s showed composure in the huddle – and in the pocket.
“In college, Joe stood in that pocket and hung onto that (ball) to the last second trying to make a play. He still has that tenacity about him,” Eagles coach Andy Reid said. “He gets the ball out even quicker, he sees things even quicker now. It’s just very impressive.”
Flacco has made life easy for Harbaugh and offensive coordinator Cam Cameron. They give him the plays, he makes them work. If he takes a misstep, the only correction involved is physical; the coaching staff need not administer emotional aid in the wake of a poor performance.
“He’s Joe. He doesn’t get upset,” Harbaugh said. “You don’t have to massage Joe at all. You just go to work. It’s really all about football with Joe.”
Notes: OT Jared Gaither (shoulder) did not practice Wednesday, and is questionable for Sunday. The Ravens signed OT Chad Slaughter and waived LB Robert McCune. … CB Samari Rolle (arm), WR Derrick Mason (shoulder) and Ed Reed (neck) also missed practice.
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