Joe Flacco takes on a fresh challenge as the starting quarterback for Cleveland Browns
Joe Flacco Named Starting Quarterback for Cleveland Browns in 2025 Season
Joe Flacco is set to lead the Cleveland Browns as their starting quarterback for the 2025 NFL season. This marks the first time the 40-year-old quarterback has been named the starter for a team since his time with the Jets.
Flacco's appointment follows the unavailability of Deshaun Watson and Kenny Pickett. Watson remains on the Physically Unable to Perform (PUP) list due to injury, while Pickett was traded to the Las Vegas Raiders.
Kevin Stefanski, the Browns' coach, stated that Flacco has earned the starting role. The team's general manager, Andrew Berry, mentioned the possibility of keeping four quarterbacks on the 53-man roster, but the final makeup of the squad has not been revealed yet.
The Browns finalized their 53-man roster for 2025 and announced their quarterback depth chart as:
- 1st string: Joe Flacco
- 2nd string: Dillon Gabriel (rookie)
- 3rd string: Shedeur Sanders
Dillon Gabriel, a third-round pick, has shown upside but also experienced growing pains while assimilating to an NFL offense. Shedeur Sanders, a fifth-round pick, threw two TDs in the preseason opener before getting injured.
Stefanski advised all quarterbacks to prepare as if they were starters while being backups in the NFL. The team held Flacco out of preseason games to ensure his health status didn't change.
This will be Flacco's first opening week start since 2022 with the Jets. The Browns' first game of the 2025 season is against the Cincinnati Bengals on Sept. 7, a team against whom Flacco made his first career start 15 years ago.
Flacco, who has embraced another opportunity with the Cleveland Browns following an up-and-down 2024 with the Colts as Anthony Richardson's primary backup, is feeling "as good as ever" physically.
The fact that every game could be Flacco's last is something he has embraced. As he prepares for the new season, the Browns' quarterback depth chart is set with Flacco as the starter, Dillon Gabriel as the second-string QB, and Shedeur Sanders as the third-string QB.
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