Second look

A day after leading the Ravens to a season-opening 17-10 victory, rookie quarterback Joe Flacco received some good-natured ribbing from his teammates and a vote of confidence from his head coach.

[RavensFaninNY]

The coaching staff of the Ravens is really starting to annoy me with their wish-washy attitude. They won't commit to Flacco this season? So what does that mean as long as he keeps doing well he's in but what...after one bad game they are going to bring in someone else? I don't know what their angle is on this...maybe it is just a motivation tactic.

[Ruffus]

Was there ever any question that he would start game #2? This puzzles me...why would ANYONE think otherwise? Unless we are already conceeding this year....

[Bruce]

The coaching staff needs to stick with one QB and one QB only. They need that continuity. Flacco should be the full time starter, period.

[AngryDragon84]

If he wasn't named the starter then it would be obvious that Harbaugh is taking advice from Freidgen.

[bill]

There is no reason to pull Flacco from the starting line-up again, ever...unless he has a complete meltdown over a period of weeks or something.

[Tone]

i think we need to consider the fact that he is still a rookie and that's why the coach is not making him the full time starter. flacco has all the skills to lead this team for a long time. coaching a young guy with so much upside has got to be a pressure situation. so many have been ruined by starting too soon. tempting but i say play troy when healthy enough

[Jon]

How is this a story?

[Rich]

How can you argue with our coaching staff after the product they put on the field Sunday? I assure you Flacco is very happy to have landed here with this coaching staff, and knows that Harbaugh will do what best for the Baltimore Ravens which includes himself. It's quite a feather in Joe's cap to be selected to start game 2. Remember as good as Sundays victory was, it was against the Bengals not one of the NFL's best.

[Palermo]

They should play the guy that put the team in a better position to win, period.

[Harry]

After this wk Flacco will have as many starts as Smith does in the NFL and Bouman is a journeyman career back up. It makes no sense to not name him the long term starter. If the Ravens fall behind in a game and Flacco is getting banged around and throws like 3 or 4 ints, then you might put Smith in late in the game to see if he can run around and pull the game out. But the very next wk Flacco should still be the starter and for the rest of the season.

[shane]

Why would anyone even asked this question? are you kidding me? yes it was the bengals yes we were at home and yes flacco should start the rest of the year. the coaching staff isnt being wishy washy there are just trying to keep his from getting a big head. bye troy smith bye kyle boller.

[BirdLand]

Long as he's kept his head in the game he will be the starter,but I wouldn't say good bye to Troy Smith ....I would say bye to Boller Shane of Halethrope MD

[Doug M]

Remember, David Carr won his first game to! As the article states.....

Do I think Flacco should start, YES!

Will there be some painful Rookies mistakes? YES

Will those mistakes cost us a game? Probably

Is he the Future? well yes, until we trade up to draft Steffy in the First Round next year.

Will the Ravens make the playoffs this year? To early to call, I still say no at this point. Offense looked better, but it was still two strange plays that got us TD's. We should beat Houston this week, pending hurricane activity. Then we find out where we stand! The next "easy" game after this week Dolphins and Bengals again. Not that any game is easy. See Dolphins last year (and I was there to see that mess in person)

[ChefSanta]

Flacco did a GREAT job! The Coaching staff did a Great job!
If Billick was still here - it still would have been two runs in the middle, three yard pass with 3rd and 20.
Boller would still have been - turnover, turnover, nervous feet - deer in the headlights.
What a pleasure to see a young man, poised, calm, and some good play calling and coaching!
Good Luck Joe - you did a Great job!
Good Luck Coaching Staff - You did a Great job!
It's Great to come away from a game with a good feeling about our Offense.

[steveg]

Of course, one would have to be insane to pull him out now. Flacco seems to have some of the qualities a quarterback needs (in addition to a good arm) - good quick decision-making, poise and leadership. Let him learn by playing. And that is from someone who thought he should not start at all this year. Go Ravens.

[Ranten]

I certainly think that Flacco should start, but it would be nice to know what is Troy Smith's status. Is he even healthy enough to play right now? Is he practicing?

[Lewis]

Who else do you think would start. This is a non issue. The Ravens are just playing games.

[Aman]

Throughout the pre-season the coaching staff have done a great job of not showing their hand.

Think of all the time the Bengals staff had to plan against Kyle and/or Troy, only to be faced with the unknown rookie. Brilliant!

Now, once again, Coach Harbaugh is being very non-committal with starting QB, not a bad move really.

Deception is a big part of the game.

[Plastic Poodle]

I think he wants to continue to make Flacco WORK for the starting job. Nobody wants a rookie with a big ego, thinking he won the starting job already. Its obvious Harbaugh wants competition and will not accept "good enough" from Flacco. I think it is a wise coaching decision and could make Flacco work just a bit harder. That would be the type of coach I would want if I was Flacco.

It's obvious to us he won the job, but Harbaugh promised an open competition and he wants to stick to his word. Now it might get ridiculous if Troy Smith were playing again at week 8, Flacco playing just as well as Sunday, and still calling it a "competition".

[swiftsilent1]

I think Flacco is the real deal. I know it is only one game, against a mediocre opponent but he showed the poise and talent of a top notch QB out there. There is something about his personality that reminds me of the tools it takes to be a great one in this league. He reminds me of Unitas in alot of ways. Lets see how it pans out but I think this kid is the answer that we have all been waiting to see for a LONG LONG time.