With the Ravens in the playoffs and their focus squarely on the upcoming Armageddon against the Kansas City Chiefs, the first thing Joe Flacco was asked to address Wednesday was the pressing issue of … his beard.
This is the beard he broke out for the first time last week, the one that makes him look like Abe Lincoln: The Early Years. Or maybe Viggo Mortensen if he wore shoulder pads in "Lord of the Rings."
"Are you aware that fans are growing beards in your honor?" someone asked Flacco.
For a moment, the Ravens quarterback seemed puzzled.
"You're not on Facebook, are you?" the questioner continued.
Apparently not, because now Flacco flashed a shy grin before the subject mercifully returned to football.
Actually, it was nice to hear that some fans think enough of Flacco to pay him the small tribute of growing look-alike beards. I say that because, frankly, the amount of criticism Flacco has taken in this town, particularly in the past few weeks, has been astounding.
Here's a guy who passed for a career-high 3,622 yards and 25 touchdowns this season with just 10 interceptions.
Here's a guy who, over the final 14 games, was the NFL's No. 2-rated passer (103.4), throwing 24 touchdowns and just five picks.
And the Ravens' record over that span was 11-3.
Guess who was the only quarterback to finish with a higher rating?
If you guessed Tom Brady, the New England Patriots' golden boy, you win the prize.
And yet to hear a certain segment of the fan base — the talk-show loonies and the message board haters, mostly — Flacco's a bum who shouldn't even be calling signals for Perry Hall High School.
The rest of the Ravens find all this criticism directed at their quarterback exasperating. Or amusing in a sick, what-can-you-do sort of way.
"I don't know what people want," wide receiver Derrick Mason said. "Do they want him to be Peyton Manning? Or Tom Brady? Or Drew Brees? He will become one of those quarterbacks. But it takes time. Between him and Matt Ryan [ Atlanta Falcons], they're the two best quarterbacks in the game right now.
"He's taken us to the playoffs three times, the AFC Championship once. …He hasn't taken us to the Super Bowl yet. But it's coming."
Anquan Boldin, the other Ravens wide-out who has sung Flacco's praises all season, said: "I think everyone in this locker room has confidence in Joe."
OK, you can understand what's behind some of the knocks Flacco has been taking lately.
Some of it is frustration over how inconsistent — and unimaginative — the offense has been for weeks now.
This was supposed to be the season that the Ravens lit up the scoreboard with a daring, exciting offense.
This was supposed to be the season where the Ravens threw the ball all over the place to Boldin and Mason, to T.J. Houshmandzadeh and Donte Stallworth, loosening up the defenses so Ray Rice could run wild.
For whatever reason, it hasn't happened. So now when the fans aren't crying out for offensive coordinator Cam Cameron's scalp, some of them are ripping Flacco.
You hear it over and over: he's too slow dropping back, he can't read defenses, he can't throw into tight windows and blah, blah, blah.
"I don't think the fans understand how long it takes for a true, really good quarterback to mature in this league," Mason said. "And Joe's ahead of the curve. You hear, 'Joe, he doesn't do this, he doesn't do that.' Let's talk about all the things he does well. Each year his touchdown and interception ratio has gotten … better. His completion ratio is better. Touchdown passes are up. Quarterback rating is up. So, honestly, the guy is doing something right.
"I don't think people are looking at that. They're trying to compare him to a Brees, or a Manning, or a Brady. And that's unfair. Compare him to the guys he came up with. And he's right there with them."
Here's the other thing some fans don't like about Flacco: his laid-back demeanor.
I get this all the time in e-mails and phone calls. "What's wrong with Joe? He's gotta be more fiery, get in guy's faces, be a leader out there."
This one just leaves Mason shaking his head.
"How many quarterbacks are there out there who really get fired up?" he said. "Joe gets excited every now and then. But look at Peyton Manning, his demeanor is [even] across the board. Tom Brady, calm and cool. Drew Brees, calm and cool.
"As a quarterback, you have to be that way. And that's a great attribute that Joe has."
Maybe some of the criticism of Flacco will ease if he has a big game against the Chiefs Sunday. The Ravens would like that. Because right now, they don't know what else people want from their young quarterback.
I don't know what else they want, either.
(Listen to Kevin Cowherd Tuesdays from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. with Jerry Coleman on Fox 1370 AM Sports.)