Joe Flacco Dealt Harsh Reality by Former QB Amid Browns Battle

A noted analyst and former NFL quarterback doesn’t see much good coming from the Cleveland Browns handing the starting job to Joe Flacco.

The 40-year-old Flacco is part of a four-man quarterback battle in Cleveland. Kenny Pickett and rookies Dillon Gabriel and Shedeur Sanders are also competing for the job.

Flacco has the most decorated resume and some history with the Browns. He was signed off the couch in 2023 and helped lead Cleveland to the postseason, recording a 4-1 record in his regular-season starts.

However, the Browns are at a crossroads as they look to solve their long-standing quarterback issue. ESPN’s Dan Orlovsky thinks the Browns need to let their rookies play to see what they’ve got as they plan for the future.

“I would do everything I can to start either Shedeur Sanders or Dillon Gabriel this year,” Orlovsky said on The Pat McAfee Show. “I would only start Joe Flacco or Kenny, and probably Joe, if, ‘Oh my gosh, this is a disaster.’ And if you’re Kevin Stefanski and Andrew Berry, their head coach and general manager, you go, ‘Hey, if one of these two kids starts, we’re going to get fired,’ if it’s that bad throughout the preseason.

“There’s not a ton of benefit, for me, starting Joe Flacco, because it doesn’t answer anything with the potential of next year’s class and them figuring out long term at least what’s the situation. So, I would start one of those two rookies.

Joe Flacco Not Expected to be Mentor for Young Browns QBs

Flacco knows his time in the league is coming to an end but wants to make the most of it while he’s still got a shot at logging starts. After signing with Cleveland, Flacco didn’t sound open to a “mentor” role for a rookie quarterback.

“Listen, it’s such a weird question to ask, and you kind of get in trouble no matter how you answer it. I don’t think anybody ever really views themselves as a mentor, solely as a mentor. We all want to go out there and compete and play,” Flacco said. “I think when you have a competitive, good quarterback room, you don’t really have to worry about being a mentor. You just kind of do you. You compete and you have fun and conversations come up and everybody learns from it.”

Browns general manager, Andrew Berry, expressed a similar sentiment when asked about Flacco’s role.

“To take advantage of the reps that he gets and compete for the job. Like, it doesn’t really change,” Berry said during a radio interview on 92.3 The Fan. “We will have a number of professional individuals in that room, and they’ll get along well, they’ll work together. But Joe’s job also isn’t to bring along rookies. We have a very experienced and good coaching staff. That’s their job. Joe’s job is to compete and earn a role just like the others in the room.”

Shedeur Sanders Addition Brings Spotlight to Browns QB Competition

The Browns made one of the most talked-about picks of the draft when they selected Sanders in the fifth round. Once projected as a potential first-rounder, Sanders slid down boards and the Browns saw significant value in the fifth round.

“We felt like it got to a point where he was probably mispriced relative to the draft,” Berry said. “Really, the acquisition cost was pretty light, and it’s a guy that we think can outproduce his draft slot.”

Sanders brings intriguing upside to the Browns, but his arrival also turns up the heat on an already crowded quarterback competition. As rookie minicamp showed, every move he makes draws attention — and that spotlight will only intensify as the season nears.