One year after allowing Joe Flacco to leave via free agency to assuage the feelings of one DeShaun Watson. The Browns signed Flacco to a one-year agreement for four million dollars plus potential incentives.
Flacco spent last season in Indianapolis, playing eight games, starting six of them, and throwing twelve touchdown passes against seven interceptions for the Colts.
Flacco spent the latter half of the 2023 season leading the Browns to the playoffs before losing to the Houston Texans in the wild card round, throwing for over 1,600 yards and thirteen touchdowns in five starts, winning four of the five.
Flacco turned forty in January, so he isn't more than a patchwork fix for a year, and will join recently acquired Kenny Pickett as the only quarterbacks on the current roster.
The Browns are expected to select one, if not two, passers in the upcoming draft, so the QB room will most likely consist of Flacco, Pickett, and a rookie to be determined for the 2025 season.
The signing of Flacco is going to help a franchise in need of goodwill, as the return will be popular with the fan base, and it's proven that Flacco can succeed in the Kevin Stefanski offense, but even Flacco at his best throws a lot of interceptions and has been known to give the ball up when hit by the opposing pass rush, so this isn't a perfect signing.
However, Flacco isn't afraid to throw the ball downfield, which under a similar quarterback in Jameis Winston, Jerry Jeudy found the most success of his career, and David Njoku was very productive in Flacco's previous stint in Cleveland, so there are some positives to the signing and combined with the rumored selection of Colorado wide receiver Travis Hunter with the Browns second overall pick, the Browns could suddenly find themselves with receivers that can make big plays for a change!
It's a contract that won't choke the franchise like some (Watson) and isn't costly, so while this contract will not turn the Browns into instant contenders, it does give the team a chance to improve over an awful 2024.
That's pretty good for a team with the track record of the Cleveland Browns.
No comments:
Post a Comment