The Cleveland Browns have responded to the loss of Deshaun Watson and brought a real NFL veteran on board with Joe Flacco. The experienced quarterback was initially signed for the practice squad, but could soon take over the offense in Cleveland.
Sources are said to have confirmed this at least to the two “ESPN” reporters Adam Schefter and Field Yates. Schefter and Yates were also the ones who reported on Flacco’s signing.
Flacco had already completed a workout with the Browns on Friday. Afterwards it was said that the cooperation would not come to fruition. So now the turnaround in Cleveland.
At 38 years old, Joe Flacco is of course already in the late autumn of his career, but can look back on the experience of 199 NFL games (including the postseason). From 2008 to 2018 he played for the Baltimore Ravens, with whom he even won the Super Bowl in 2013.
Flacco was most recently under contract with the New York Jets for three years, where he didn’t pull any punches and only played 12 games in three seasons, nine of them as a starter. He only won one of these nine games.
NFL: Experience fighting for the playoffs
Nevertheless, it is precisely this great experience that should be the decisive factor in signing the quarterback. The Browns are in the middle of the fight for the playoffs and apparently don’t want to put their good or bad luck in the hands of rookie Dorian Thompson-Robinson.
He didn’t have a good day in the 13:10 win against the Steelers with 24/34 passes for 165 yards and one interception, even if he led the Browns to the decisive field goal with a good drive.
However, the key to victory was once again the elite defense around Myles Garrett. With this unit, it’s often easy for the Browns’ quarterback, whoever it is, not to throw the game away. And Joe Flacco could be the right man for that.