T Bell
Footballguy
One thing to keep in mind is that Cameron is from the Coryell-Zampese-Gibbs offensive system (Turner, Saunders and Martz are also from that one, as is Whisenhunt, though I'm less sure about that). This system was known for minimizing the responsibility of the QB to make reads as much as possible, unlike Walsh's WCO which emphasized those responsibilities all the more. This had a consequence of empowering some relatively modestly talented QB's and if not making them stars at least enabling them to make enough plays for their teams to win. Joe Gibbs probably carried that concept to its most significant conclusion by winning 3 Super Bowls with 3 different and frankly modestly talented QB's in Theismann, Williams and Rypien, two of whom were the Super Bowl MVP's. Dennis Green also enjoyed some success with that system in Minnesota with modestly talented QB's, including Sean Salisbury, a younger Rich Gannon and an aging Jim McMahon. Essentially the QB's cardinal rules were to, more or less in order, avoid INT's and sacks, have a strong arm and be accurate throwing deep, excel at play-action, and make enough shorter and intermediate throws to convert third downs and take pressure off of the running game. This sounds like a pretty good description of the Baltimore offense this season. Historically this system has not produced QB1's in fantasy, but it does tend to produce unlikely players who consistently put up solid fantasy numbers if they continue to develop and if they have a good enough supporting cast around them. I don't bring this up to criticize Cameron or Flacco - in fact the brilliance of a system that empowers a greater number of people at one of the most important positions and toughest positions to fill in this sport is probably underappreciated. I'm just establishing a context here that helps to explain what we've seen. Drew Bledsoe, who always seemed to end up in his prime as the QB5-QB10 or so, is probably a pretty good model for Joe Flacco's ceiling in this system.Part of the reason that it's so hard to say whether Flacco's rookie year is a sign of bigger things to come is the outstanding job Cam Cameron has done putting together an offense that only asks Flacco to do what he can do at this point in his career. It seems like most of the time Flacco has two reads at most, which gives the offense the luxury of max protecting Flacco on most passing downs. His prodigious arm strength has translated well on the deep outs and long ball that seems to take forever to come down, and you have to give a ton of credit to Cameron for identifying what Flacco can do well at this early juncture and building the passing offense around those things. If there was a coordinator of the year award, Cameron would be my pick.Flacco has also surprised me with his poise under pressure. He doesn't go fetal position like David Carr or crap your pants like Rex Grossman. He's made a few plays once the original play breaks down, and he's been very disciplined about throwing the ball away when there's no good options. In short, Flacco has been an outstanding game manager. The Ravens D and power running game have allowed them to install a passing offense without many wrinkles, and because Flacco hasn't been asked to do more than he's capable of, his confidence and presence has grown as the season has gone on. He is definitely a better QB than he was the first time the Titans and Ravens played.On the other hand, there's what we haven't seen Flacco do very much, which is make complex hair-trigger reads and operate under immediate pressure (among other things). Flacco has shown a tendency to lose his poise a bit under immediate pressure (who doesnt), and he's been making mainly binary or even single reads on his passing plays. This reminds me a lot of how Chucky made Chris Simms (another big armed, big frame QB) a halfway decent QB for a bit. Flacco also rarely hits WRs on the run. Mason is often running to a spot and stationary when Flacco hits him on those deep outs. I haven't seen Flacco make many throws where he has to throw before the WR has made his break, or make improvisional touch throws, or use that arm to cram the ball into small windows.Flacco has shown growth over the course of the season, and he certainly hasn't been overwhelmed by the speed of the pro game. Like Big Ben, he fell into a perfect situation for a young QB to gain confidence, which is the foundation of a good career for any player. Chances are, Cameron won't sit on his laurels and instead give the league a moving target, which bodes well for Flacco's future.
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