How much of a factor will Joe Flacco’s familiarity with the Browns’ playbook be in the QB battle?

How much of a factor will Joe Flacco’s familiarity with the Browns’ playbook be in the QB battle?

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J and G weren’t here yesterday when we spent the first hour of the show talking about day two of OTAs, which was open to the media, the quarterback competition, but there was a quote from Joe Flacco that stood out to me and I’m curious what you guys think of Joe Flacco’s quote and how it will impact the impending quarterback battle and while we talked about the quote, I’m sure we’ll. Get some thoughts from Jay and G on Shadora Sanders, Dylan Gabriel, and what they were able to see on day two of OTAs, but Joe Flacco was asked about his familiarity with the offense. Is it a similar playbook to what he ran in 2023 when he had success in December, led the Browns to the playoffs? And this is what Joe Flacco had to say, quote. It’s a lot of similar concepts and things like that. There may be some new names and some new ways we’re teaching things, but ultimately, a lot of the course stuff is pretty similar. Kevin Steansky said they’re reverting back to the offense. He likes to run the 2023 version, no spread, fewer RPOs, more under center play action. But Gee, do you think Joe Flacco’s familiarity with the offensive system because he played 5 games in a playoff game here with Kevin Steanski in 2023 gives him a bit of an inside track to eventually winning that QB1 job? Yeah, I, I know it’s kind of bland, but That’s why in the beginning I always thought that Joe Flacco, when, you know, had the leg up, uh, when you talk about what exactly Joe Flacco does well, it’s pretty much all of the other stuff that Kevin Savinsky likes to call and run. Um, you know, when you got, you know, people look at it kind of uh uh as a, in a vacuum a little bit like this competition, but there’s other things on the outside that play into it. Joe Flacco’s been around for so long. In the league, they have a lot of times where people might call something a different thing. It might be different verbiage, but it’s the same concepts or and, and you’ve been around and you’ve been able to to be around somebody that was with Kevin Seansky and they say, oh yeah, we used to do this in Baltimore, you know, 1015 years ago or I was with the Jets and we did this and the Colts had a little something similar to that. So, you know, Joe has the ability to have all of those concepts in his head and to understand the bigger picture. So when you look at the some of the younger guys like Dylan Gabriel or Shadoor Sanders, You know you can say something to Joe and Joe has this really 30,000 ft view of, OK, what does the concept mean? What is the primary receiver, what am I looking at, what, what are my eyes looking at as far as my landmarks and, and safeties and what is the coverage you been giving me when I’ve ran this in other places before, and that’s a big, that, that’s almost like having the answers to the test already, like, a lot of the other guys have to understand or have to get to all those places and he’s already done it. Not, not to mention. And he, he was already here at one point in time and he has some success doing it. So when Kevin fancy calls that play, he can go back to his memory and he can say, OK, I remember I was doing this against the, the first game against the Rams or I remember this happening against Chicago or, you know, different things like that where he, he can recall, figure out what, what he did good or bad in those situations and it helps him out. And, and then plus too that, I, I thought the only reason, the only way that somebody would really Come up and take, you know, Flacco’s minutes or or unseat him early in the season would be if he came out there and he was throwing the football and his arm wasn’t there. But uh I was watching the show the other day, watched some of the other stuff, and by all intents and purposes like Jason said, I was watching him, he says, I know, Flacco can still throw the ball he can spin it. So if he still got that. And he already know the playbook. You’re in an uphill battle, you know what I’m saying? You’re in an uphill battle. The only thing that I, I could see that, that unseats him is if he gets hurt or his arm falls off, so his arm ain’t fell off, you know the playbook, so I think he’s, uh, like I said before, I think, you know, he starts the season off as the guy who has the best chance to start the game one. Yeah, I echo all that. I mean, certainly if, if the question is, does it give him an edge, the answer to that is absolutely yes. He knows it. He’s been in it even though he was only in it for a third of the season. Joe’s the kind of guy that’s a sponge. He soaked it all up. He knew it well then. There was never a moment during his 5 regular season starts, correct me if I’m wrong, where I looked at him and he had to call an emergency time out or he didn’t understand a play call or he was just, just not present with what was supposed to happen. Um, I think that was the thing that shocked me the most because he was on the couch one week and he’s under center the next week and he had complete command of the playbook and he just knew where everybody was supposed to be and that’s, that’s what a 38 at the time your old pro does. He knows how to study, he knows how to cram it in there and get it all done. And I think that was his biggest um skill set coming into this year is the fact that he’s he’s knows the offense, but the question was interesting the way it was because the, the question was, does it give him a leg up in the quarterback competition or should it come down to which of the four guys is the best quarterback? That’s the way you would phrased it in the overnight note, um, and. That’s where it gets interesting for me anyhow because the more I hear guys talk, and when I say guys, I mean beat reporters that cover the team every day. It seems to me to be a fait accompli that Joe’s not going to win this job. Am I right, Jay? It just seems like that’s where the wind is blowing. Yeah, — that’s that’s what it’s it’s
— complicated because. What, what does playing a 40 year old Joe Flacco accomplish for you? And, and, and listen, — I’m not asking about Joe Flacco
— right now. — Joe Flacco right now is best quarterback on this roster and
— you know what, when I was thinking about this topic last night, that’s the one point I wanted to stress. And I also wanted to follow it up with this. Yes, he’s the best quarterback on the roster. He damn well better be. One guy’s played parts of 34 seasons. I don’t know. Pickett’s been in 32 years. Yeah, he was a starter for 2 years, didn’t start last year in Philly. Uh, the other two guys haven’t taken a snap, so he better be the best quarterback on this roster, even at 40 years old because we’ve seen how he can throw the football. When if you, if you didn’t look at the number and you just watched the footwork and the arm and the throws and the accuracy and the tightness of the spiral, he is head and shoulders, the best quarterback on this team right now. Uh, he’s supposed to be, but that got me to the tricky answer to the second part of this question, and I’ll read it again. Should it come down to which of the four guys is the best quarterback? Because of what you said and because of the way the wind is blowing with most of the beat reporters, it seems to be this fait accompli that it’s not going to be Joe. It, it’s just not because they don’t learn anything. Most teams when they have a quarterback competition, this is their goal. Well, who gives the best chance to win. Well, that’s easy. Joe Flacco gives the Browns the best chance to win, period, full stop. End of story, at least today. But with the Browns, that’s not necessarily their mission coming into the 2025 season, and I think that that blinking billboard is blinking louder and stronger and faster than I’ve seen it blink. This is, to quote your phrase, the gentleman’s punt. That’s happening in June, in May, last day of May. Um, is that the right, it might be the right thing to do. But I, I’ll tell you as an aged fan who only has so many shots left in the chamber to watch this team try to do the unthinkable. When you’re 59 and life expectancy is 78 and you’ve got 19 bullets to fire, you don’t wanna fire one off intermittently and, and not even aim at your target. And that’s what they’re doing and there’s just a loser’s mentality. I, I understand it’s for the greater good, but that to me is equal to throwing games in December so you can try to get a better draft pick in May. If there’s 17 games in April, if there’s 17 games this year and Joe Flacco starts 13 of them, 14 of them we got a problem. What did you learn? Nothing when we get to the end of the season. My hope looking at these four quarterbacks, you look at Kenny Pickett, Joe Flacco, Shaddoor, and Dylan Gabriel. My hope when we’re at the end of the season, Shaddoor Sanders has the most starts of anybody on this rock. I, — I would say that that would be the best thing for this team
— because he’s the only one that I look at and say you might have a future with him, you better find out what you have. I don’t think you have a future with Dylan Gabriel. I don’t think. I don’t think you have a future with Kenny Pickett. I don’t think you have a future with Joe Flacco.door is the one guy that you look at, you say. There might be something there we gotta get a look at that. So if, if it’s anything other than Shaddoor unless he gets hurt, obviously you gotta throw injuries out. If, if there’s anyone who doesn’t, who doesn’t get more game reps or more game starts than Shador, I think that’s a mistake unless they come to the conclusion. It’s not him. — He’s got what
— about so that leads me to what my next question was because Joe Thomas, when he was on the show after the draft, said very bluntly and matter of factly, oh, we’ll know real fast which one of these guys can play and which can’t. I remember that. And so based on that, I’ll, I’ll ask another question. When the Packers drafted Aaron Rodgers with a firm #1 ahead of him that at the time no one thought was going anywhere in the next two years. So you were looking at Aaron Rodgers as the future but not the immediate future. Why wasn’t it talked about then with Aaron Rodgers what the Packers did with that situation that worked to perfection and by the way, the way they replaced Aaron Rodgers is the same way they replaced Brett Favre. They went out and drafted Jordan Love, who had to sit and watch. Yes, it’s a high functioning organization that did it the right way. And, — and because
— of that they took a lot of heat in the moment because they didn’t supply their quarterback with weapons. But Aaron Rodgers wanted weapons and they didn’t give him weapons. They gave him Jordan Love. They gave him his replacement. And, and, and listen, — yeah everybody
— to be the heat and there there isn’t always a winner or loser both sides could be right. Yeah, you’re right. And, and that’s, but so the reason I bring that up is because we have seen situations with prominent quarterbacks in the last 10 years. That have come into the league and I know with Aaron Rodgers, it’s longer than that, but I’ll use Patrick Mahomes as an example. When Patrick Mahomes was drafted. I think the the thought there was he can sit, he could watch. Was it Alex Smith that was ahead of him? He can sit, he can watch and all of a sudden when it came his turn, and that was whenever the organization decided he is ready for the ball, let’s make the transition. I feel like That transition could happen here, and here’s what I mean by that. What if Joe is the best coming out of training camp? Do you really want to give the gentleman’s punt to your team in week one and throw one of the kids out there when they’re not ready because you have nothing to gain by playing a youngster too soon? Can I? Yeah, you can, but let me finish my, my point here. I think what I would think, I know that you’re saying if Shour doesn’t start the most games, it’s, it’s, we don’t learn anything. What’s wrong with if Joe’s the best quarterback and he gives us the best chance? This is the same guy who two years ago came in off the couch and rallied a 4-1 to punch a playoff ticket. So what’s the harm in giving him the first month, maybe longer, to see where this goes. We’re thinking 0 and 6 is a possibility crew. 0 and 6 is a possibility with this schedule. What if he comes in 3 and 3 through the gauntlet part of the schedule and, and then once you realize if it, if it turns into 6 and 8, and now you go, OK, and I know it’s a short, it’s only 3 games, but now you pull the trigger and say, OK, Shadour, — now
— it’s your that’s not enough because you have two number 1 picks. That’s not enough time for Shador. Go ahead, G. So what, what if, so there’s, there’s been a, a popular theory going around that says maybe Kevin Savinsky and Andrew Berry are not on the hot seat. We talked about it. Well, I, — I think it’s been said by the owner they’re
— not. General managers who are on the hot seat don’t trade down to acquire not willingly. So let’s extrapolate that out. If they say, OK, we got Shador Sanders, we got him in the 5th round, we got all these other quarterbacks and we’re looking around. Um, and then they go through the season, they go through camp and say, look, man, we feel we got something here, but Joe is a better player. Joe at this point is, is better equipped to handle the starting role handling the season, and they get off to not what people would expect to be a bad start. What if they get off to a 500 start? That’s why I said 3 and 33 6. I, I would, if 3 and 3 through the 1st 6, it would be like scaling Everest. And if Joe can do that, what if the organization says, look, well, listen. We like Shaddoor good enough that we do think he’s a future starting quarterback for us. We might have let him sit. What if he sits the entire year? What if you don’t even see the field? Shod Sanders don’t see the field, you, Joe Flacco plays, plays the, the season out, your record is what your record is, and couldn’t possibly believe that the Cleveland Browns have already can make an evaluation saying we like him, we fell to us in the 5th round. We’re gonna let him sit, mature, do whatever we want, get into the system, learn from Joe Flacco and do exactly what people have been cla. for forever, not like me. I’ve been, I’m like, you gotta play tomorrow. But what if they’re saying, all right, we’re gonna let you sit like Mahomes. We’re gonna let you sit like uh uh uh Jordan Love, we’re gonna let you sit like some of these other guys, Aaron Rodgers, and we’ll see what you do and you come in next year and guess what? Now you have a whole year that you sat and watched, you didn’t do anything and you got to learn from somebody and the rest of the two quarterbacks are under. One year deals. So now you go into next year with an opportunity with two first round picks that you can do other things with besides quarterback. Is it possible they can make that evaluation on Shado Sanders that they like him enough that they don’t even have to play him this year, but they’ll play him? See, — I think
— that’s possible. Do you, Joe? No, you don’t. Why? No, no, no, no, no, if they, if he isn’t play at all this year, they’re taking a quarterback in the first round next year. Really. Oh yeah, done. So, well then, here’s what I would say, but they, — they like Dorian
— Thompson Robinson. — They really like
— Dorian, but you know until they threw out the game and they said, — Oh my
— God, I think then you have your answer. You see him every day in practice. You see him every day, and I understand that live bullets are a totally different thing, but To say that absolutely if he doesn’t hit the field, then you have to go quarterback next year then you’ve already made the assessment that this isn’t your guy. If he’s your guy, he’ll beat Joe Flacco. They made the decision when they traded down, they’re taking a quarterback next year. When they traded Dylan Gabriel, they made the decision. They’re not taking Shadoy Sanders. They’re leaving him for somebody else. They never thought when they took Dylan Gabriel in the 3rd round, Shadore Sanders was still going to be there in the. — I know
— they didn’t. That was an emergency, so they were very comfortable with not having him. In Cleveland, and then they got to the point where it’s like, well, we might as well, we might as well take a shot. Look, we’re he’s still here. It, it’s a value pick at this point. Let’s take a shot. But if they don’t play him all season long, — they’re telling you what they
— think about the odds of that happening though, by the way, like one team has one quarterback all 17 teams and nobody nobody’s doing that at 40. But I’ll say this, you don’t really have a choice. Like if Joe Flacco is out here and they get off to a start where they’re competitive and they’re in the hunt, yeah, — you’re gonna you’re not taking
— him out of the game. — You’re not
— the first of all, the fans won’t let you. Second of all, the veterans on the team will not let that happen. They will be up in arms because they’re gonna say, listen, guys, you punted on the season. Joe is playing well. These other guys are rookies, you, you. I’m just saying it like this. We’ve been talking about it forever. We’ve been saying that the, the Cleveland Browns have an opportunity, hey, why don’t you do it like some of these other, uh, other people do, right? I get that Shadoor is a 5th round pick, but there’s a, there’s a, uh, a chance that the Browns see something in him for the future and say, well, look, we, we’re, we’re not content, we’re content with, with letting him grow and develop like we said we was gonna do and we’re still got veterans in here that can help us try to win some football. I don’t think it’s a, I don’t think it’s a foregone, especially if it’s, if your theory is correct that they’re, they’re not in, in any, in any sort of, sort of danger of losing their jobs tomorrow. I definitely think that that might be a situation. I will say this about the hot seat. Um, someone once told me about we, we were doing this debate once it, and I can’t remember who it was. I think it might have been over Mike Shanahan, but I can’t remember. We were doing this debate on whether or not the seat was hot, and one of our analysts said this, and it was so prophetic, and I, I just, I keep hearing it. What NFL seed isn’t hot? Every seat in the NFL is hot. I mean, save Bill Belichick when he was in New England and Andy Reid now in, I mean, remember Sirani was a hot young star rising through the ranks, had an awful season two years ago. There were people in Philly that wanted him fired. Unceremoniously let go. The guy wins the Super Bowl the next year. So your fate and fortune in the NFL hinges on the next game. I know, I know it’s really not that week to week, but let’s face it, for, for an administration, and I’m talking about Steansky and Barry that have had the checkered past that they’ve had, and I don’t mean checkered with controversy. I just mean good year, bad year, good year, bad year. When you’re not consistently good, your seats warm. And it’s, it’s a few weeks from being hot. So I know that the, the owner can say all he wants. They’ve got my vote of confidence. What is that, what does that typically meant historically? Well, — when the
— owner says that I’ve said this multiple times, but it bears repeating one more. I talked to someone who worked there. Who got a glowing review at his annual review, a glowing review from the Haslams, fired two weeks later. Yeah, there you go. So you’re trusting a highly emotional owner to not make an emotional decision in October and November when his history has been, so yeah, there’s risk in that for sure, but one other thing you said if Flacco’s playing well they can’t bench him. I show you Johnny Manziel and Brian Hoyer. The Browns were in the playoff hunt. They were in the playoff hunt and they benched Hoyer for Man. Now, is there, is there a difference though, the gravitas that Hoyer brought compared to the gravitas. It doesn’t matter. — Joe Flacco brings
— a veteran. It was a veteran who had the team in the playoff hunt. And they benched him, — but for a guy who never
— we saw Flacco go to a playoff game. — That’d
— be he’s done it and, and at the, at the risk of being hyperbolic, which I love to do, uh, let’s just say instead of 3 and 3 through that gauntlet 1st 6 weeks. If you go 4 and 2, Joe’s not sitting down until they’re 2 or 3 games under 500 and you’re waving goodbye to the season. — You know how many
— t-shirts I’m gonna print and 2. — I got a
— look at that schedule. What is the what’s the percentage? Pull that back up, Steve. I think the Browns can go 4 and 2 to start the season. The same chance I would have given him coming off the couch and taking the Browns to the playoffs. What that is, I don’t know. Single digits. I will eat the oatmeal over a sugar cookie before the Browns go 4 and 2. I know that. Listen, I get it. I said at the risk of sounding hyperbolic. They’re not going 4 and 2, OK? And that would be a lovely problem for the Browns’ management to have, but it’s something that Browns fan base would welcome with open arms. We want 4 and 2. Yes, we want our future quarterback, but we don’t want another gentleman’s punt on a season. I don’t. I want it out of years, man. I want a championship. Last year was rough. Yeah, 3, — it
— was rough. — I don’t need
— one of those was rough.

Joe Flacco’s familiarity with the Cleveland Browns’ playbook matters. Let’s not act like it doesn’t. He knows Kevin Stefanski’s system inside and out. That gives him a real head start over younger guys like Shedeur Sanders and Dillon Gabriel, especially when it comes to making pre-snap reads, protections, and just operating with pace. Flacco already earned trust in the locker room during last year’s playoff push, and if this coaching staff is looking for a steady hand while Shedeur develops, then Flacco’s experience and his knowledge of the offense might make him the safest option to start Week 1.

But let’s keep it a buck — if this QB battle is truly open, then playbook knowledge alone won’t be enough. This team didn’t draft two quarterbacks just to hand it to the vet. Flacco might know the system, but Shedeur has the arm talent, the swag, and the long-term upside this fanbase is craving. If he can close the gap mentally by training camp, and flash in preseason, Stefanski might have no choice but to hand the keys to the kid. So yeah, Flacco’s familiarity gives him a leg up early — but that only matters if the Browns are trying to win now instead of building for the future.

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