For Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco, a possible return to the playoffs won't be the only thing he has to look forward to this coming January. Flacco told the team's website that his wife, Dana, is expecting the couple's third child that month.
The Flaccos already have two sons, and a third child will put Flacco well on his way to five, which he told the team website was his goal.
Flacco played the 2013 home opener against the Cleveland Browns after his second son, Daniel, was born an hour before the game. His first son, two-year-old, Stephen, was born during minicamp in 2012.
Perhaps a more immediate concern is the parental proclivity for illness when children are concerned. Flacco was stuffy for the Week 10 win over the Tennessee Titans, after which he'd said he picked up an illness from his children.
He also missed a practice in mid-September due to illness, a rarity for the durable franchise quarterback.
The AFC playoffs begin the weekend of Jan. 3.