Joe Flacco, both Browns starter and on practice squad, talks wild journey: ‘Never know … what lies ahead’

Joe Flacco was named the starter of the Cleveland Browns for the rest of the season. One problem with that promotion? Flacco actually needs to be on the Browns roster. 

Flacco is actually on the Browns’ practice squad, meaning he’s technically free to sign with any team this week. The Browns will offer Flacco a contract — and there’s little doubt he’ll sign with them — but Flacco could take any offer or any phone call that comes his way. Half of the NFL has used multiple starting quarterbacks season, making Flacco’s status a free agent even more intriguing. 

No team called Flacco prior to the Browns. He may get a few more calls now. 

“It had gotten to the point in the year where there was probably a couple of times where I could have gotten called, but I didn’t,” Flacco said after the Browns’ win Sunday, via a team transcript. “So, I was starting to think that I wasn’t. And especially even these guys, they didn’t call me until later in the week, so I kind of had thought the time had gone and passed, but they wanted me to come out and work out, and I was grateful to do it.”

Flacco threw for 311 yards and three touchdowns in Sunday’s win over the Jacksonville Jaguars, becoming the fourth quarterback to have 300 passing yards and three passing touchdowns in a game for four different teams. He surpassed Jeff Garcia (by four years) as the oldest Browns quarterback with 300 passing yards and three passing touchdowns in a game. Flacco was also the 19th quarterback to win 100 career games. 

All the teams with quarterback issues could have signed Flacco. They chose another option. 

“I love the game,” Flacco said to Pro Football Talk. “That’s the first reason. And the second reason is I have a lot of people around me that allow me to believe in myself. I still feel like I can play the game, so that’s the main thing is, you know, I feel like I owe it to myself. 

“(I’m) just so grateful to have the opportunity a couple weeks ago. And you never know where things are going to take you. And we don’t know what lies ahead at this point either. But man, it’s been a blast. It’s been so much fun to be back out in that field.”