The NFL world has opined and joked about the situation for several years, but Joe Flacco isn’t an elite quarterback. And the Baltimore Ravens are slowly beginning to look toward the future.
According to Jeff Zrebiec of the Baltimore Sun, head coach John Harbaugh said the Ravens will consider picking a signal-caller in the 2018 NFL draft.
“It is something that we will talking about, for sure. Certain positions are going to be more important than others, but when you have a veteran quarterback at this stage, that is the time you are always looking for a young backup.”
Flacco, a first-round pick in 2008, has started 154 games over his 10 seasons and led the Ravens to the playoffs six times.
However, Baltimore has only reached the postseason once in the five years since winning the Super Bowl during the 2012 campaign. Flacco will turn 33 years old in mid-January, and he’s not getting better.
During each of the last four years, Flacco’s average yards per attempt has dropped. It’s fallen from 7.2 — tied for the second-highest mark of his career — to 6.8, 6.4 and a personal-worst 5.7 this season.
Now, the Ravens don’t need to bail on Flacco, since they’re typically in the playoff picture with him under center. Appearing in the postseason and actually being a contender are two different discussions, though.
Baltimore owns the 16th pick in the upcoming draft, so Josh Rosen, Sam Darnold and Baker Mayfield will probably be off the board. Josh Allen has also been labeled a potential top pick, so the Ravens will likely spend plenty of time evaluating Mason Rudolph and Lamar Jackson.
The franchise doesn’t absolutely need to pick a quarterback in 2018, considering Flacco can still be a serviceable starter. But the Ravens shouldn’t wait much longer to find his successor, either.