Browns icon defends Joe Flacco winning Comeback Player of the Year

Cleveland Browns icon and retired offensive weapon/kick returner Eric Metcalf suggested on the latest edition of Bleav's "Dawg Check" program that Cleveland quarterback Joe Flacco deserved to win Associated Press Comeback Player of the Year honors over Buffalo Bills safety Damar Hamlin. 

"Joe Flacco, I mean, he was just, you know, he was at home playing Monopoly with his kids and everything," Metcalf explained, according to Eva Geitheim of Fan Nation's Bleav website. "So when you're talking about him coming in off his couch, leading this team to the playoffs, the numbers he had during the course of the games that he played. He was throwing it down the field and it wasn't like he was just throwing it six, seven yards and guys were breaking for 78. He was throwing it down the field for guys. And guys felt strongly about him getting Comeback Player of the Year."

Flacco remained an unsigned free agent through the start of November until Cleveland lost QB1 Deshaun Watson to a season-ending shoulder injury. The Super Bowl XLVII Most Valuable Player then turned the clock back by winning four of five starts to guide the Browns to a playoff berth and an 11-6 record. In total, the 39-year-old completed 123-of-204 regular-season passes (60.3%) for 1,616 yards with 13 touchdowns and eight interceptions during his brief Cleveland stint. 

According to ESPN stats, Flacco would've led the NFL with an average of 323.2 passing yards per game if he finished the regular season among eligible players. 

To compare, Hamlin produced rather forgettable numbers in five regular-season and two playoff appearances for the 2023 Bills. He nevertheless was widely viewed as the favorite to win Comeback Player of the Year after he returned to Buffalo's active roster less than eight full months after he went into cardiac arrest during a "Monday Night Football" game in January 2023. 

The Pro Football Writers of America voted Hamlin their Comeback Player of the Year for the campaign. 

Flacco received 13 first-place votes and 151 total points in AP voting, while Hamlin finished with 21 first-place votes and 140 total points. Interestingly, Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa earned Sporting News Comeback Player of the Year honors after he considered retiring last offseason due to fears related to the multiple concussions he suffered during the 2022 campaign. 

In short, Hamlin wasn't the slam-dunk candidate for CPOTY many believed him to be as recently as early January.