Seeing Joe Flacco in Browns apparel may take some getting used to. The former Ravens quarterback used to torment the Browns over the course of his 15-year career, to the beat of an 18-3 record against Cleveland.
Now, he'll be suiting up with Browns insignia on his jersey. It wasn't the moral dilemma some may make it out to be. Flacco welcomed the opportunity warmly.
"I got a call from my agent and they asked to come work out – I said alright," Flacco explained. They said alright, here's what we're gonna and I just kind of nodded my head along the whole way and next thing you know, we're here.
"It would probably be a little different if I was coming here four or five years ago, but having bounced around a few spots now, it's probably not quite as different [to be in a Browns uniform]. Teams change so much from year-to-year in this league."
In five games played with the New York Jets last season, Flacco passed for just over 1000 yards to go along with five touchdowns and three interceptions. Ironically, four of those touchdowns came against his new team, the Browns, in a miraculous Week 2 comeback win that saw Flacco erase a 13-point deficit in less than two minutes.
Flacco reverted back to a backup role once young QB Zach Wilson returned from injury in Week Four. He made a final appearance in the last game of the regular season but wound up going unsigned throughout the offseason. That remained the case for 11 weeks of this season as Flacco was watching games from his couch as a free agent instead of from the sidelines. He knew what he wanted.
"My decision was just [wanting] some kind of opportunity," Flacco said. "I know I still wanna play football and anything close to being put in a locker room and given that opportunity. All other things kind of go out the window, you don't really look back."
There's certainly not much left for Flacco to prove at this point in his career. In 11 years with Baltimore, Flacco racked up 38,245 yards passing and 212 touchdowns. He's a Super Bowl Champion. Heck, there are still bar-side conversations had between old friends about Flacco, debating whether or not the veteran QB should have ever been considered one of the elite signal callers in the NFL.
For some that would be enough, to call it a career. But it's not always easy to let go of something you love, so when the Browns came calling, he was happy to just nod along happily and sign up for the ride.
"To a certain extent, [football] is all I know. I still have a lot of fun doing it, I do feel like I have a stuff left in the tank. I owe it to myself to try and push forward and play the game that i love until I really feel like I can't do it anymore."
Despite his agreeability, Flacco still made sure to do his homework. And as the Browns get ready to face the Denver Broncos in Week 12, ironically it was a former Broncos coach – who Flacco spent the 2019 season with – who helped sell him even more on coming to Cleveland.
"Even before I came and worked out here, Gary Kubiak gave me a call and just had a lot of praise for [Kevin Stefanski and his staff]," Flacco said. "I trust Gary's word. I was only with him one year but he's a very honest man so what he says goes. Definitely had a lot of good things to say about this situation."
Whether or not Flacco can channel anything from his glory days in Baltimore to help the Browns in their pursuit of the playoffs remains to be seen. For now, he's just trying to get acclimated and enjoy the moment.
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