Veteran Joe Flacco acquired criticism from members of the NFL community after he suggested this previous spring he was extra involved with profitable the Cleveland Browns’ beginning quarterback job than with mentoring 2022 first-round draft choose Kenny Pickett, 2025 third-round choice Dillon Gabriel and 2025 fifth-rounder Shedeur Sanders.
Throughout a current chat with Michael Silver of The Athletic, Flacco insisted he is not going out of his approach to make Cleveland’s youthful signal-callers really feel unwelcome this summer season.
“Pay attention, I will be an (expletive), however not essentially in that method,” Flacco defined. “I really feel like I attempt to be an excellent particular person, so all I can do is do my job to one of the best of my means. If meaning I’m not the man, nicely, yeah, I would really feel a sure method about it, however I’m not gonna be bitter about it in the direction of different those who didn’t do something to me. That quarterback room is a sacred room. I believe you’ve received to deal with individuals proper in that room and assist them — something to assist the staff.”
It most likely does not harm that head coach Kevin Stefanski has made it clear that he has Flacco penciled in atop the depth chart. The Browns confirmed on Monday that Flacco is their unofficial QB1 heading into their preseason opener on the Carolina Panthers on Aug. 8.
As of Tuesday morning, FanDuel Sportsbook
had Flacco because the betting favourite at -265 odds to begin Cleveland’s Week 1 recreation in opposition to the Cincinnati Bengals on Sept. 7. That mentioned, Flacco is a 40-year-old who may discover himself that includes for one of many league’s worst groups this fall if projections shared by DraftKings Sportsbook be show to be correct.
Simply final week, Browns proprietor Jimmy Haslam indicated he needs to see each Gabriel and Sanders take regular-season snaps later this yr. For now, Flacco sounds assured that he offers Cleveland one of the best likelihood to earn a win over Cincinnati on the primary Sunday of September.
“I imply, I believe everyone’s most likely slightly bit unrealistic after they’re self-evaluating,” Flacco added, “however I’m trustworthy with myself. Perhaps I’m not my 29-year-old self, however I really feel actually good. I really feel that I can nonetheless transfer, and my arm is all of what it’s ever been.”
Flacco turned a Cleveland sports activities hero when he received four of five regular-season begins to information the 2023 Browns to a playoff berth. If he can recapture a few of that magic, he may preserve the opposite lively quarterbacks on the Cleveland roster sidelined by means of not less than a portion of November.
