Bengals Beat Out Multiple Teams to Sign Joe Flacco to be Joe Burrow’s Backup

Joe Flacco had a few options to continue his NFL career, but landed in Cincinnati, according to a report from ESPN's Jeremy Fowler. Flacco had multiple suitors, including the Raiders, but chose to return to Cincinnati, where he filled in for an injured Joe Burrow in 2025.

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"Flacco had interest from the Las Vegas Raiders, among others. But he liked the setup in Cincinnati coming off last season," Fowler posted on X while noting Flacco is getting a one-year, $6 million deal with max incentives up to $9 million.

Flacco was a key part of keeping hope alive in Cincinnati's season once Burrow went down with a toe injury.

Beloved In The Building

Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Flacco (16) catches up with former teammates before the first quarter of the NFL Week 18 game between the Cincinnati Bengals and the Cleveland Browns at Paycor Stadium in Downtown Cincinnati on Sunday, Jan. 4, 2026. | Sam Greene/The Enquirer / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Cincinnati is hoping to keep Burrow healthy this coming season after Flacco threw for 1,664 yards, 13 TDs, and four INTs in his nine appearances.

The return should make all of the offensive coaches happy, including coordinator Dan Pitcher.

His experience will be valuable again during the 2025 season.

"He’s been one of my favorite guys to be around," Pitcher said about Flacco at the NFL Combine. "I kidded him in our last discussion that he might be my last chance to coach somebody older than me. He laughed. I don’t know if he was pissed or thought that was funny. He was awesome. Great guy to work with. He brought the perspective and ability that only 20 years in the NFL and 200-whatever starts can bring. There are not a lot of people walking the earth like that. We love Joe. I’d love to have him back. He’s going to make decisions that are best for him and his family. We’ll see where it goes from there."

Zac Taylor appreciated his grit as a 40-plus-year-old player last season.

"Flacco, he could barely lift his arm this week, and he's willing to go put himself out there for a bunch of teammates he's known for three weeks," Taylor noted after the Bears' loss. "He's a football player. That's what he got up here and said: 'I play football for a living. That's what I do.'

"And oftentimes, you need that throughout the locker room: Guys who are just football players and they remember that, and they'll go out there and do whatever it takes to help their team to win a game, no matter what, no matter the circumstances."

Cincinnati's quarterback room is largely set with Flacco in the second-string role and Josh Johnson behind him.

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