Few quarterback situations have sparked as much debate as the Baltimore Ravens drafting Lamar Jackson while Joe Flacco was still their franchise starter. At that time, Flacco was already 11 years into his career with the Ravens. And now, years later, Flacco has opened up and revealed what his immediate reaction to the move was.

“I think you have a few different thoughts,” said Flacco on the Michael Irvin Podcast. “I mean, part of you is like, all right, I’m gonna show them I’m gonna go play my a** off, and then I’m gonna say up yours to a certain extent, you know what I mean or whatever. I think that’s probably your initial thought that I’m gonna show you how it goes.

“You have to have those feelings. I think we all have those feelings to drive us. But also, they can get in your way. So you’ve got to be able to compartmentalize it and still go out there and work and do the right things. And listen, it didn’t go how I wanted. And you have to learn how to live with that and still get up and go be the person that you think you are.”

The Baltimore Ravens drafted Joe Flacco in 2008 as their first-round pick. And right from the rookie season, Flacco became the team’s QB1 because expected starter Kyle Boller suffered a season-ending shoulder injury. But he didn’t disappoint. Flacco lived up to the expectation and wrapped up the season with an 11–5 record.

The momentum continued. And in the 2012 season, Flacco led the Ravens to their second and his first Lombardi Trophy win (Super Bowl XLVII). Till the 2014 season, both parties enjoyed a strong run. However, since 2015, a few troubles emerged for Baltimore. Between 2015 and 2017, the Ravens missed the playoffs three consecutive times. In 2017 in particular, the Ravens ranked 29th in the NFL in passing yards per game (189) and struggled with a predictable offense.

Meanwhile, at that time, Joe Flacco’s passer rating also hovered in the low 80s. While the team’s performance cannot entirely be blamed on Flacco, his performance somewhat declined as well. Following these tough few years, the Ravens eventually drafted Lamar Jackson in 2018.

With the signing of a dual-threat quarterback like Jackson, Baltimore seemingly tackled the predictable offense concerns and became a crucial asset. As things stand, Jackson has started 107 regular-season games for the franchise, in which he won 76. And overall, he has racked up 22,608 passing yards and 187 touchdowns while winning MVP awards in 2019 and 2023.

Meanwhile, Flacco left the Ravens after the 2018 season. He jumped multiple ships since then, from the Broncos, Jets, Eagles, Browns, and Colts, to finally end up with the Bengals in the 2025 season.