The Cleveland Browns solved a piece of their quarterback puzzle when they signed Joe Flacco earlier this month. With Deshaun Watson sidelined and a path to trading for Kirk Cousins blocked (for now), Flacco could wind up reprising his starting role as he led the Browns to the playoffs in 2023.
But while Flacco’s reunion is official, it almost never happened. Flacco revealed in a recent interview that he almost reunited with his former team and it would have put a potential Browns target within their division as the 40-year-old attempts to turn back the clock.
Joe Flacco Pursued Reunion With Ravens Before Signing With Browns
Flacco discussed his free agent tour with Mike Preston of the Baltimore Sun in an article published on Wednesday morning. While Flacco ultimately agreed to a one-year deal with the Browns, he revealed that the Baltimore Ravens reached out about a potential return before signing Cooper Rush to a two-year, $6.2 million deal to back up Lamar Jackson.
“They did kind of reach out to [my agent] Joe [Linta], gauging my interest for something like that to happen,” Flacco said. “My agent called me up and was like ‘What do you want me to tell them?’ I’m like ‘Well, listen, I’m interested. I don’t know what’s going to happen. It’s not like choice, No. 1, I don’t know what’s going to happen here with me if I’m going to get an opportunity to do something a little bit more, but I wasn’t against it.’ I think I would’ve been excited about it in a little bit of a way.”
Flacco was originally drafted by the Ravens in the first round (18th overall) in the 2008 NFL Draft, throwing for 38,245 yards, 212 touchdowns, 136 interceptions over 11 seasons. A Super Bowl champion in 2013, Flacco’s reign came to an end when the Ravens took Lamar Jackson in the first round (32nd overall) in the 2018 draft.
After a final year in Baltimore, Flacco assumed the role of the journeyman backup, playing for four different teams over the past six seasons. But his best success came in Cleveland, taking over for an injured Watson and leading the Browns to a 4-1 record over the final five games to help them make the playoffs.
Flacco spent last season with the Indianapolis Colts as the backup to Anthony Richardson but wound up appearing in eight games and starting six of them, tying a career-high with a 65.3% completion rate and throwing for 1,761 yards, 12 touchdowns and seven interceptions.
Had Flacco returned to the Ravens, he would have served a similar role with virtually no chance of playing behind Lamar Jackson. But it’s a different situation in Cleveland where the only addition has been a trade for Kenny Pickett.
The Browns could still add a quarterback in next week’s draft, Flacco may have found his best situation to make some starts next year. Whether that will be enough to lift Cleveland to the playoffs remains to be seen.