At one point during the offseason, Joe Flacco drove up to a golf course in North Jersey to play a round of golf with some friends.
When he started the day, the possibility of signing with the Browns wasn't even on his radar. After a full day of golf and no phone on his person, when Flacco checked his phone that night, the potential for a return to Cleveland had changed.
Now, Flacco is a member of the Browns once again. He agreed to terms with the Browns on April 11, returning to Cleveland after spending the latter portion of the 2023 season with the Browns.
"To see familiar faces and a lot of guys that we did some cool things with is always refreshing," Flacco said. "You look at the past and there's something that makes you feel good about it, but it mostly just comes down to the people. Not necessarily like the results that we had last time, but the guys in the locker room, having some familiarity with them is a big, big part of it."
He first joined the Browns in Week 12 of the 2023 season and started five consecutive games beginning in Week 13. During that stretch, the Browns went 4-1 with Flacco at quarterback. His tenure was highlighted by the Week 17 win over the Jets on Thursday Night Football that officially clinched their playoff berth – their first playoff appearance since 2020.
While in Cleveland, Flacco completed 123 of 204 passing attempts for 1,616 passing yards and 13 touchdowns during the regular season. That season he became the first player in NFL history to record at least 250 passing yards and two touchdown passes in each of his first five games with a team. The Browns ended the 2023 season with an 11-6 record and earned a trip to the Wild Card round of the playoffs.
Flacco then spent the 2024 season with the Colts, appearing in eight games with six starts. He completed 162 of 248 passing attempts for 1,761 passing yards and 12 touchdowns.
This time around, Flacco is in the building from the beginning of offseason workouts, having the opportunity to send the entire offseason with his teammates and further build relationships with his teammates. And his teammates were just as excited to see him back in building.
"I love Flacco," CB Denzel Ward said. "Flacco is a great guy. When he was here, he led us far in the season and a bunch of wins. I'm glad to have that veteran presence in the room."
One of the biggest questions of the 2025 offseason for the Browns centered around the quarterback room. With QB Deshaun Watson set to miss significant time of the 2025 season as he recovers from a re-ruptured Achilles tendon, Cleveland had to add depth to the room.
The Browns quarterback room currently consists of Flacco and Kenny Pickett, who Cleveland acquired in a trade with the Eagles at the beginning of the new league year on March 12. The Browns could also add a rookie in the 2025 NFL Draft, set to begin on April 24.
No matter how the room takes shape, Flacco said he doesn't hold any expectations for the 2025 season. In brief conversations with head coach Kevin Stefanski, Flacco said the Browns do not have preconceived notions about who is going to be the starting quarterback for the 2025 season.
"I don't really have any expectations besides to go out there, be myself and kind of put my head down, work hard, and of just do things the way I know how to," Flacco said. "I'm just excited to be here, the possibility and the opportunity."
And Stefanski reiterated that sentiment about the quarterback competition in his press conference. He said part of that competition process comes in divvying up reps and getting extra work for certain players in order to get the maximum exposure to scenarios and situations.
"Competition brings out the best in everybody," Stefanski said. "I look at competition as a really good thing. I think it's a really good thing especially when you like the guys that are competing for the job like we do. I think it only elevates everyone's play."
Flacco is entering his 18th NFL season and has held a variety of roles over the course of his storied career. In 17 seasons he's played 196 regular-season games with 191 starts. He's played for five teams over the course of his career.
Flacco has worked with the same trainer for 15 years to prepare him for the NFL season to stay strong and fresh. At this stage of his career, Flacco said one of the hurdles is the mental side of the game and not getting worn out, which he combats through developed relationships with his teammates and coaching staff.
Through it all, he continues to rely on his love of the game, which has led him to this place in his career and a second stop with the Browns.
"Players ask a lot, 'Why are you still doing this?'" Flacco recalled. "And what eventually came to me is, I want to. I want to play. I think it's easy to. It'd be easy to say, 'All right, I've done enough,' but I made a decision that I'm going to do this. And I feel like once I made that decision, in my mind, then I didn't give myself an out. And I want to play, and I'm going to play until I can't."
