Joe Flacco delivers ice cold verdict on being named Browns starting QB over Shedeur Sanders

Joe Flacco is already looking ahead after being named the Cleveland Browns starting quarterback.

The Browns decided that the veteran signal caller is their best shot at finding success early on in the 2025 season and he will get his first snaps of preseason on Saturday.

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The Browns quarterback saga has rumbled on throughout the offseason, with Shedeur Sanders and fellow rookie Dillon Gabriel taking a chance to shine in the two preseason outings so far.

When the Browns host the Los Angeles Rams on Saturday, it will be Flacco who takes the field as starter having been named as QB1, but Gabriel and Sanders are likely to see gametime with Kenny Pickett still feeling his way back from injury.

While Flacco’s start will be a blow to Gabriel and Sanders – both selected in April’s NFL Draft – although the former has already been tipped to eventually steal Flacco’s job.

The 40-year-old Flacco took the emotion out of the situation and maintained it was all about business when speaking with reporters on Tuesday.

“Listen, it’s just business as usual,” Flacco coldly said.

“Go out there and get another good practice in, get some rest with the guys and continue to work towards what we’ve been all training camp. . . . Like I said, you keep your head down and you just try to do your best, and I felt like I was having a good camp with the reps that I was given, and that’s all you can do.”

“I don’t know if I was very emotional about it, but listen, you don’t take for granted opportunities in this league, especially to get one at this point in my career is definitely special, but like I said, it’s pretty much business as usual and just kind of trying to get better,” Flacco said.

Flacco’s first proper test will be against the Cincinnati Bengals before returning to a place he knows all too well in Week 2.

Flacco looking forward to playing in Baltimore

The Browns’ second game is against the Baltimore Ravens, a team Flacco spent ten years with.

It’s where he won his only Super Bowl, doing so in 2012.

And after that impressive stint with the Browns in 2023, which saw him win NFL Comeback Player of the Year, he returned to the Ravens after one year with the Indianapolis Colts.

“I love playing in Baltimore. Such a special place, unbelievable fans, division game.” Flacco told reporters in a press conference.

“I mean, it just does not get any better than that. You know, that is what the plan is, and that would definitely be very exciting.”

Flacco’s successful stint with the Ravens

Flacco started his NFL career with the Ravens, joining the team in the 2008 draft as the 18th overall pick.

He created instant history as the pick, becoming the highest ever drafted player from the University of Delaware.

Flacco became the starting quarterback immediately after the incumbent Kyler Boller suffered a season-ending injury, while the other signal caller, Troy Smith, was out with illness.

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Flacco went on to enjoy a successful rookie season.

He became the third rookie quarterback in NFL history to win his first postseason start after the Ravens defeated the Miami Dolphins.

He backed that up by leading them to the AFC Championship before losing to the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Flacco was named the Rookie of the Year after his stellar season.

The Ravens would reach the playoffs each season over the next three years with Flacco at the helm.

And in the 2012 season, Flacco would reach the pinnacle of football.

The Ravens reached the Super Bowl by beating the Colts, Denver Broncos and New England Patriots during their postseason run.

It set up a clash with the San Fransisnco 49ers in the Super Bowl.

Flacco’s three touchdowns and 22 of 33 passes spurred the Ravens on to a 34-31 win and a Super Bowl victory.

After his contract expired at the end of that season, Flacco was rewarded with a six-year contract worth $120 million, which made him the highest-paid quarterback in the NFL at the time.

He’s very much the elder statesman in a decidedly young QB room.

But don’t expect him to be focused on mentoring the next generation of football stars.

Speaking back in May, the 40-year-old insisted his priority is playing football games, regardless of who sits behind him on the depth chart.

Flacco explained: “I tend to try to be honest, and I’ve said, ‘I’m not a mentor. I play football.’

“In a quarterback room, there’s a lot of times — there’s been already a ton of times — where there’s learning experiences. I have a lot of experience, and I can talk on things, and hopefully they listen.

“But it’s not necessarily my job to make sure they listen to me.”

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