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Flacco gets nod as Ravens host Bengals

Sep 7, 2008 - 12:50 PM Cincinnati AT Baltimore, 1:00 pm EDT

BALTIMORE (Ticker) -- Three weeks ago, Baltimore Ravens head coach John Harbaugh dismissed the idea of rookie Joe Flacco earning the starting quarterback job. How quickly things changed.

Flacco will be under center when the Ravens host the Cincinnati Bengals on Sunday in the regular-season opener.

The No. 18 overall pick in the draft out of tiny Delaware, the 6-6 Flacco was expected to be little more than an observer for at least the first half of the season.

That is, until injuries and illness KO'd the top two candidates for the position - former No. 1 pick Kyle Boller and 2006 Heisman Trophy winner Troy Smith.

Boller, a former first-round pick of Baltimore, has been bothered by a nagging shoulder ailment that could cause him to miss substantial time.

Smith, who was thought to have the inside track on the job, came down with a viral illness just prior to the Ravens' third preseason game. He now is suffering from an infection of his tonsils.

Flacco was forced to start the final two preseason games with mixed results, finishing 18-of-37 for 152 yards and a touchdown in the first outing and 8-for-13 for 72 yards in his last.

First-year coach Harbaugh, who replaced Brian Billick, conceded he had to hand the rookie the starting job by default, since both Smith and Boller may not even be in uniform against the Bengals.

"It wouldn't be realistic to have one of those two guys (Boller or Smith) as a starter for sure. If they can back up, I think that would be an upset," Harbaugh said. "You couldn't envision this scenario; it wasn't what we planned.

"But, he's (Flacco) certainly benefited from it. And you can see the improvement from the first game to the fourth game."

The Bengals, as usual, had a turbulent offseason with the release - and subsequent re-signing - of troubled wide receiver Chris Henry and the trade demands of fellow wideout Chad Johnson, who since has tried to repair his image while legally changing his name to Chad Javon Ochoa Cinco.

A bigger, and more significant change, was releasing Rudi Johnson, a three-time 1,000-yard rusher and inserting 2004 first-round pick Chris Perry as the starting running back.

The oft-injured Perry has appeared in just 22 games but Cincinnati loves his size and pass-catching ability, hoping it gives an added dimension to an offense that was among the league's most disappointing in 2007.

The Bengals swept the season series a year ago.