Joe Flacco didn't want to make excuses Sunday after losing to the Patriots, 41-7. He said his knee felt great.
But on Monday, Head Coach John Harbaugh said Flacco isn't at full strength.
Asked whether Flacco's injured left knee affected his performance in any way, Harbaugh said, "I'm sure."
"He's definitely not 100 percent on that knee," Harbaugh said.
"To say how much or to what degree, it's just impossible to say. I think he fought through it, he gutted it out, he battled. That's what you do this time of year. That's what makes Joe who he is, that's what makes him a tough, hard-nosed competitor. We appreciate that."
Harbaugh added that no player who sees a lot of playing time is 100 percent at this time of the year. Flacco hadn't missed a single snap this season before he was replaced by Tyrod Taylor late in the fourth quarter of Sunday's loss.
"I can't think of one player who's 100 percent who's played [a lot of snaps]," Harbaugh said.
Flacco's left knee was hit by Lions linebacker DeAndre Levy's helmet on Monday night, Dec. 16, bending it inwards. There are reports that Flacco suffered a mild MCL sprain.
Flacco went 22-of-38 for 260 yards, no touchdown passes and two interceptions in Sunday's loss. He was inaccurate on several passes.
"The brace didn't affect anything. My knee felt great," Flacco said after Sunday's game. "I probably didn't have the same burst, but it felt good. I felt like I could move on it and run on it and do all kinds of things. It really held up well."
