IJoe Flacco Issues Strong Message to Browns Fans After Return to Cleveland
The Cleveland Browns caught lightning in a bottle with Joe Flacco down the stretch in 2023, and the end result was a 4-1 record and a wildcard berth into the AFC playoffs. Cleveland parted ways with Flacco the following offseason, ironically because he had performed too well and was too well embraced by the long-struggling fan base. Deshaun Watson was heading into the third year of his five-year guaranteed contract, and Browns brass didn’t want the pressure Flacco represented on Watson’s shoulders. But Watson struggled again in 2024 before an Achilles tendon injury cut his season short. Flacco spent the year with the Indianapolis Colts, but with the circumstances in Cleveland now drastically changed, the 40-year-old has returned to the club on a one-year contract for what could potentially be the last campaign of his NFL career. Flacco spoke with ESPN Cleveland on Wednesday, April 16, and offered a reassurance to Browns fans as to the status of his game, as well as his belief in himself.
“I still feel like I can do it at a high level,” Flacco said. “Also, I have five kids at home and I have to get away from them, you know, a little bit.”
Flacco put up 1,616 passing yards, 13 touchdowns and eight interceptions across his five starts with Cleveland in 2023. He appeared in eight games for the Colts last season, starting six of those contests, and produced 1,761 passing yards, 12 touchdowns and seven interceptions.
