Bengals' 'Exhaustive' QB Search Included Some Interesting Names, Per NFL Insider

They landed on Joe Flacco, but they called around a bunch, according to Ian Rapoport.

The Bengals are currently 2-3 on the season. / Sam Greene/The Enquirer / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The Bengals made a huge splash in the NFL realm this week when they traded for veteran Browns backup Joe Flacco, a bombshell attempt at saving their plummeting season. Flacco, who was benched in Cleveland in favor of rookie Dillon Gabriel, will now replace Jake Browning, who took the reins from an injured Joe Burrow but hasn't done a great job in the three games he has played.

On Sunday morning, NFL Network's Ian Rapoport shared some intriguing details regarding Cincinnati's frantic search for a signal caller, a report that also included a look at some of the other names the team considered.

Per Rapoport, the Bengals' "exhaustive" search involved "calling nearly all teams with three quarterbacks or a viable practice squad option," which led them to inquire about Texans' QB2 Davis Mills, Eagles' QB3 Sam Howell and even former Saints QB Derek Carr, who retired over the offseason.

The front office landed on Flacco because they "wanted someone who played recently," Rapoport continued, which is why they didn't "check in on [former Titans QB] Ryan Tannehill."

As for how things have gone since Flacco's arrival, Rapoport said the Bengals thought this week of practice was "excellent."

Watch/read those comments below:

The #Bengals’ exhaustive QB search including calling nearly all teams with 3 QBs or a viable PS option. Among the names they inquired about: Davis Mills, Sam Howell and Derek Carr, who is still retired with the #Saints. No call on Ryan Tannehill, who hasn’t played since 2023. https://t.co/yLdFJJcq51

— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) October 12, 2025

For what it's worth, Rapoport's report is in keeping with notes from ESPN's Dan Graziano, who wrote Wednesday that, "after a third straight loss, [the team] spent Sunday and Monday calling around to pretty much any team that had more than two quarterbacks on its roster."

Graziano said that Russell Wilson, Jameis Winston or Kirk Cousins were not ever "real possibilities," but there was "some chatter" about Seahawks backup Drew Lock, as well as Howell in Philadelphia.

Flacco will start on Sunday vs. the Packers at 4:25 p.m. ET, so we won't have to wait long for his debut. We'll see if he can inject some life into the Bengals' struggling squad.

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