Could NFC North team steal Joe Flacco from Browns?

Veteran quarterback Joe Flacco isn't against re-signing with the Cleveland Browns but wants at least one more chance to serve as a starter for a club. 

According to Browns insider Tony Grossi of ESPN Cleveland/The Land on Demand, the Minnesota Vikings could prevent the Browns from holding onto their desired backup signal-caller. 

"I believe Flacco would come back to the Browns unless he finds a better opportunity to play elsewhere," Grossi explained in a mailbag. "Where might that be? I’m watching Minnesota. If the Vikings aren’t able to re-sign Kirk Cousins, I think they’d be interested in Flacco. They were one of the teams that inquired about Flacco while Flacco was on the Browns’ practice squad. But Flacco didn’t want to leave the Browns at the time and they eventually signed him to their regular roster." 

Grossi was referring to how NBC Sports' Peter King revealed in December that "two or three teams" inquired about signing Flacco after the 39-year-old tossed three touchdown passes in a victory over the Jacksonville Jaguars in Week 14. Flacco ultimately remained in Cleveland and won three additional starts to guide the club to the playoffs. He later earned Associated Press Comeback Player of the Year honors for his efforts. 

As for Minnesota, the previously mentioned Cousins reportedly could sign with the Atlanta Falcons once he becomes a free agent next week. During a Wednesday appearance on SiriusXM NFL Radio, Flacco acknowledged he still wants "to play football" instead of sitting behind an established QB1 such as Cleveland's Deshaun Watson. 

"That’s also a really, really, really big factor — probably the biggest factor," Flacco continued during the segment, per Myles Simmons of Pro Football Talk. "But that’s what I’m saying. I don’t think you can really make that decision without any hard things laid in front of you. And you sit down with your family and you see what’s best. There’s all kinds of things I could take you through that would probably have a factor in my decision." 

In mock drafts updated this week, Ryan Wilson and Chris Trapasso of CBS Sports predicted that the Vikings will leave the first round of the upcoming NFL Draft with a rookie quarterback. Minnesota theoretically could win Flacco's signature for a one-year contract by promising him he'll enter September as the team's starter. The Vikings could then draft a signal-caller who would sit behind and learn from the Super Bowl XLVII Most Valuable Player for a handful of months, if not longer.