Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco stays out of the limelight during the offseason as much as possible.
In fact his lifestyle seems almost downright boring compared to us regular people let alone other NFL players who make the headlines in your local newspapers for all the wrong reasons.
You won’t find Joe in the bars causing a stir. You won’t find Joe “making it rain” in your local adult establishment. Trust me, in this day and age we would find out about it one way or another. This offseason alone is proof enough.
It almost appears that Flacco is so far out of the loop when it comes to off-the-field issues involving his teammates he often is one of the last people to know about it.
His recent comments about the highly talked about Ravens offseason both locally and nationally only seem to further the above statement.
“I don’t know if I’m the best guy to really look at for that, because I’m usually sitting at home. I don’t even usually hear about the thing until I get back here, because I’m just kind of out of touch,” Flacco remarked when asked if veterans ever give advice to younger players on what to avoid off the field.
“There are probably some pretty good guys on our team who can give you advice on those things, because they’ve matured over the years and have looked back on some of those things and have grown from them.”
If you know Joe, what you see is what you get. Just take a look at any press conference he is a part of. It almost sounds like his answers to every question seem the same.
Lately though, more so this offseason in particular, much ado has been made about what Flacco isn’t doing. Comments have been made almost daily either across the airwaves or on message boards how Joe is “Lazy!” now that he’s hit on the big pay day.
That’s just wrong!
But before I explain why and the accusations fly about me donning purple shades or drinking purple Kool-Aid, let me say first and foremost, Flacco is not above criticism. After all he is the starting quarterback of the Ravens franchise and much like every fan, I still find myself throwing my hands up in the air on more than one occasion when it comes to some decisions he makes.
2013 was down right rank. We can blame the offensive line for their lack of protection, we can even blame the stagnant running game. Pick your poison!
But Flacco wasn’t perfect. Joe knows his last season was abysmal and he’s his is own worst critic.
“It was not a good year all around. We did not win enough football games, and the biggest thing is just not taking care of the football,” Flacco stated when looking back at last season.
“That’s my No. 1 job – it always has been – and it’s always going to be a focus of mine. I just need to make sure I do a good job of doing it.”
You don’t need to be reminded of Flacco’s record setting accomplishments since he entered the league in 2008. His huge four game post season trek culminating in The Lombardi heightened the pundits’ and the fans’ expectations for Flacco.
And then came the contract before the 2013 season
When failure followed critics pounced on him like a lion on a zebra in the Serengeti.
For those expecting Flacco to be mistake free in 2014, NEWS FLASH…
Just because Gary Kubiak is calling the plays there are going to be bumps in the road for him while the new offense is being installed.
Joe certainly understands what he has to do in order to be successful.
“I am going to go out there and play; I’m going to know the offense,” Flacco stated to his critics about the work he did or didn’t do before offseason activities began on Wednesday.
“The last problem that we’re going to have is myself [not] knowing exactly what everybody is going to do on the field. That’s never a concern.”
Don’t let his calmness and coolness fool you into thinking for a moment that he isn’t dedicated to improving his game.
Your desire to see him play to the level of his contract is dwarfed by his.
Just give the guy a chance, he has earned it.
After all it could be worse. He could be making headlines for all the wrong reasons.
Instead, the quarterback who hasn’t had a losing season in Baltimore finds himself under scrutiny for doing the right things — WINNING!
Go figure!
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