What's the Biggest Difference Between Regular-Season and Postseason Joe Flacco?

Nobody should ever confuse Joe Flacco with a great NFL quarterback.

During a time when quarterbacks' statistics are bloated by the rules of the game, Flacco is completing just over 60 percent of his passes while averaging over 3,650 yards per season. His touchdown-to-interception ratio, 148-90, is very impressive but also says a lot about the offenses he has played in with the caliber of defenses he has played with.

Flacco has the capability to be a great NFL quarterback. His arm is as strong as any other, he can be a very accurate passer and he is a good athlete who understands how to mitigate pressure in the pocket while keeping his eyes downfield. He can also read defenses quickly and manipulate coverages with his movement.

In terms of physical tools and mental acumen, Flacco is as good as all but a few quarterbacks in the NFL.

However, the Baltimore Ravens starting quarterback has always lacked the game-to-game consistency to be a great NFL quarterback. It's that lack of consistency that keeps his completion percentage low and his decision-making erratic. Too often he is heavy footed in the pocket or inaccurate outside of it.

Consistency at this level is often something that can ruin a young quarterback's career. Recently, Geno Smith provided a perfect example of a player with all of the talent to be a top-tier NFL player but the absence of any kind of consistency.

Flacco's play doesn't stretch as far as Smith's in the negative direction, but there's no doubt that he only secured his status as the Baltimore Ravens' franchise quarterback for the next decade or so because of his peaks during the postseason.

Early in Flacco's career, he played relatively well as a young starter in the playoffs. It wasn't until 2011 that he started to hit his stride.

After struggling initially against the Houston Texans in the divisional round, Flacco had one of the best games of his career against the New England Patriots in the AFC Championship Game. The Ravens lost that game because of a missed Billy Cundiff field goal in the dying moments, but the most memorable play came just before that.

Two plays before Cundiff missed a 32-yard field goal to give the Patriots a 23-20 victory, Flacco found Lee Evans in the end zone for the go-ahead touchdown.

On 2nd-and-1 at the Patriots' 14-yard line, Flacco dropped back in the pocket and brought his eyes to the right side of the field. He pump-faked the ball quickly before unleashing a well-placed pass over Sterling Moore's head and into Evans' hands.

Flacco not only gave Evans a chance to make the catch; he timed and placed his pass perfectly so that the catch should have been relatively comfortable. Instead of following through, though, Evans allowed Moore to recover and knock the ball away from him without a problem.

That throw would have been his third touchdown of the game, and it would have extended him to 320 yards passing on the day. Most importantly, it would have put the Ravens up by at least three points with just 20 seconds remaining in the game.

In spite of that bitter disappointment, the Ravens and Flacco eventually won the Super Bowl the following year when Flacco played the best stretch of football he ever has.

In four games, three on the road, Flacco consistently connected with his receivers downfield for big plays while taking care of the football. He had some luck and relied heavily on Anquan Boldin, but he also deserves much of the credit for his 11-0 touchdown-to-interception ratio.

Unsurprisingly, it would prove to be a defining stretch for Flacco, who received a huge contract extension before he could hit free agency.

It's impossible to know exactly why Flacco plays better in the postseason than he does in the regular season. There isn't one specific physical act that he does differently in these games than he does in others. He is simply more consistent in everything he attempts.

There's no question that John Harbaugh and the Ravens as a whole play a crucial role in Flacco's performances. Ever since Harbaugh took over in Baltimore, his sides have consistently executed well as a group. There are obviously bad moments to highlight, but in relation to other teams, they no doubt play up to the bigger moments rather than down.

Part of that overall culture must be traced back to the quarterback.

For all of his inconsistencies during the regular season, Flacco appears to be unperturbed by anything that happens in the playoffs. It's impossible to know exactly what is going on inside his head, but his body language suggests he is always at ease in the biggest moments.

"Joe Flacco what can you say?" Harbaugh said after the Ravens' Wildcard win, according to Connor Orr at NFL.com.

Harbaugh continued, "I think he had a perfect quarterback rating there in the third quarter. That's playoff football. That's Joe Flacco. He is the best quarterback in football. We will take him any day of the week. Twice on Sunday or Saturday night, if that be the case."

While reading body language and a player's demeanor is a fool's endeavor more often than not, Flacco's body language and demeanor match up to how his play on the field changes.

In the playoffs, Flacco is always decisive, intelligent and aware in moments that make many players frantic, uncomfortable and confused. Not since the 2011 game against the Texans has any moment ever weighed Flacco down instead of propped him up.


Source http://bleacherreport.com/articles/2319826-whats-the-biggest-difference-between-regular-season-and-postseason-joe-flacco