In the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio, many faces from various generations of football fame have been enshrined.

Many current National Football League (NFL) players have enough talent to prove the merit of their Hall of Fame campaign.  Names like Patrick Mahomes, Travis Kelce from the Kansas City Chiefs, and even Justin Tucker from the Baltimore Ravens all possess enough talent to make it here.  These names are looked upon in awe, but one name is flying under the radar: former Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco.  

Flacco was drafted with the 18th pick in the first round of the 2008 draft by the Baltimore Ravens. In the 2008 season, Flacco went 11-5 as a rookie and threw for 2,971 passing yards.

Needless to say, Flacco was the average quarterback in his rookie season. He finished the year with a total of 16 touchdowns, rushing for two of those.  He threw for 14 passing, threw 12 interceptions, and lost two fumbles.

For his achievements in his debut year, Flacco earned the NFL Rookie of the Year award for the 2008 season. This season is what set the stage for Flacco heading into the 2009 season. 

In Flacco’s second year under center, he had nine wins and seven losses and threw for 3,613 passing yards.

In the season opener at home, Flacco led the Ravens to an impressive win over the Kansas City Chiefs. Flacco had a good game and threw for 307 yards and three touchdowns. Both were career highs and in addition to those, he rushed for 18 yards. Though the team did regress a little bit, Flacco only got better.  In these two seasons combined, Flacco has a passer rating of 84.9 with 6,584 passing yards, 35 touchdowns, and 24 interceptions in 32 games. 

It usually takes three years in the NFL for a top-tier quarterback to develop into a superstar. 

However, Flacco stayed the same. In fact, his stats for 2010 were almost the same as his 2009 campaign. 

In year three, Flacco had 12 wins and four losses, passed for 3,622 yards, and had 25 touchdowns. This was a modest year for Flacco considering that he had similar numbers in 2009. 

After looking at Flacco’s third year in the league, one can see that he was the average quarterback. One can look at Ryan Fitzpatrick who was defined as the “average” NFL quarterback. Fitzpatrick threw for 3,000 yards in 2010, which was less than Flacco. Fitzpatrick had 23 touchdowns with four wins and nine losses. 

After looking at the average quarterback and comparing them to Flacco, the argument can be made that Flacco was above average. With that being said, Flacco’s best season did not happen until 2016 despite winning the Super Bowl in 2012. In 2016, Flacco’s best year, he passed for 4,317 yards, had 20 touchdowns, and had a record of eight wins and eight losses.

In Flacco’s Super Bowl year, he had 3,817 passing yards and had a record of 10 wins and six losses. Flacco did win the Super Bowl MVP award by throwing for 287 yards and three touchdowns.  

After 2018, Flacco’s tenure with the Ravens came to an end. He signed with the

Denver Broncos in 2019, resulting in a massive performance decline. Flacco threw for 1,822 passing yards with a record of two wins and six losses. 

After the 2019 season, Flacco was once again without a team. Luckily, the New York Jets picked him up as the second-string quarterback as Sam Darnold was the starting quarterback for the Jets in 2020. Flacco did get some playing time after Darnold was benched for poor quarterback play. Flacco threw for 864 passing yards and had six touchdowns. Flacco would spend two more seasons with the Jets and in those two years had 1,434 passing yards and threw for eight touchdowns.

In early November of 2023, the Cleveland Browns were desperate for a quarterback after Deshawn Watson and Dorian Thompson Robinson both got injured. As a result of Robinson and Watson getting injured, the Browns signed Joe Flacco to a one-year deal. Since signing with the Browns, Flacco has thrown for seven touchdowns and had 939 passing yards. After performing well for the Browns, Flacco has been named as the starter for the rest of the 2023 season. 

After looking at the career of Joe Flacco, one can make a case for him being Hall of Fame worthy. 

Joe Flacco’s total stats for his entire career are 43,259 passing yards and 239 touchdowns. The all-time average for passing yards is 57,633 passing yards. 

He is ranked 41st among every quarterback that has ever played in the NFL.