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Joe Flacco ranked higher on Ron Jaworski's QB list than Matt Schaub, Tony Romo, Cam Newton, Matthew Stafford, and Matt Ryan. The main reason for his ranking is his arm-strength.
From ESPN: "That's Flacco's No. 1 attribute," Jaworski said. "I get so tired of hearing how arm strength is overrated. It's far more important than people think. He has the strongest arm in the NFL."
Jaworski added, "The element always overlooked by those who minimize arm strength is the willingness of quarterbacks like Flacco to pull the trigger. Few recognize that because there is no quantifiable means by which to evaluate throws that are not made by quarterbacks with lesser arm strength. It's all about dimensions. Flacco gives you the ability to attack all areas of the field at any point in the game."
"In his four seasons, Flacco has won 69 percent of his regular-season starts," Jaworski said. "How about this? He's started nine playoff games, eight of them on the road, and he's won five of them. Now that's impressive."
"There are very few quarterbacks in the NFL with the pure throwing ability of Joe Flacco," Jaworski said. "The reason Joe is No. 9 and not higher is his production does not always match his skill set. If he can become more consistent in 2012, he will move up in my quarterback rankings."
So the main thing that is preventing Joe Flacco from being an "elite" QB in Jaws' eyes, is his statistics. He believes that he has all the intangibles and potential to be elite, he just needs to be more "consistent in his production". I think most Ravens fans will agree with this. I think the #9 rank is about right, honestly.