The quarterback Baltimore needed:
Vinny Testaverde. Tony Banks. Trent Dilfer. Kyle Boller. Need I say more?
Joe Flacco was entirely the quarterback that the Baltimore Ravens had been searching for since their inaugural season in 1996. The team was so busy building a dominant defense that it neglected the most important position of all: quarterback. But the team was content on winning games with running backs and good defenses. Why on earth would a quarterback be needed?
Once the team realized that they weren’t going anywhere without one, they frantically tried to find one. At first, the Ravens settled for veterans like Testaverde, Randall Cunningham, and Steve McNair, who were all well-out of their primes. A first round pick was spent, and wasted, in the 2003 NFL Draft on Kyle Boller, who is undoubtedly the biggest bust in the history of the Baltimore Ravens. The team simply couldn’t get it right until 2008.
The 2008 NFL Draft provided the league with two, decade defining quarterbacks, Matt Ryan of the Atlanta Falcons, and (of course) Joe Flacco. Flacco came into the NFL out of the University of Delaware, were his competition wasn’t exactly top-notch. His overall quarterback skills were questioned, but no one dared to disrespect Flacco’s arm talent. Effortlessly, Flacco could toss the pigskin 60-yards down the field. It was so easy for him, so natural. It was exactly what made the Baltimore Ravens fall in love with him.
The Ravens traded up to the 18th overall pick (after previously trading back) to secure the rights to their hopeful franchise quarterback. You bet your bottom dollar the organization would’ve made that move every single time if they knew what Joe Flacco was going to provide for them… Simply put, Flacco was everything the Ravens ever wanted in a quarterback, and he never wavered.