Why the Joe Flacco trade was the right move for the Cleveland Browns

The Cleveland Browns sent some shock waves by sending Joe Flacco, a fan favorite, to a division rival in the Cincinnati Bengals. Fans are sure to have plenty of emotions over this move, but football is a business. This was a business move, and the correct one at that.

Flacco came to the Browns in the 2023 season. Flacco thought his career may be over, but he was signed off the couch to take over for an offense that desperately needed life with Deshaun Watson hurt, and P.J. Walker and Dorian Thompson-Robinson underperforming.

Flacco went 4-1 for 1,600 yards and 13 touchdowns to guide Cleveland into the postseason. “Flacco Fever” was alive and well in Cleveland. Flacco was even named the Comeback Player of the Year.

The following offseason the Browns made the decision to not offer Flacco a new contract in the offseason, opting to return to Watson once again. Flacco signed with the Colts, where he began to decline.

In Cleveland, Watson went down once again, this time with a ruptured Achilles. This offseason, the Browns brought in a plethora of quarterbacks, hoping to find a new starter. Flacco earned the job, beating out two rookies (Dillon Gabriel and Shedeur Sanders), Kenny Pickett and Tyler Huntley.

It wasn’t pretty for Flacco though. In four games Flacco went 1-3, throwing six interceptions to just two touchdowns. The offense looked flat and lifeless, not scoring more than 17 points in a game.

It continually felt the defense could keep the Browns in games, but the lifeless offense killed them every time.

Flacco played himself right out of the starting job, with rookie Dillon Gabriel taking over the reins.

Gabriel flashed plenty of potential in his debut loss to the Minnesota Vikings. He tossed two touchdowns and didn’t turn the ball over. Confidence in Gabriel grew, enough so that the Browns don’t see a need for a veteran backup at the moment.

While the Browns began to turn to Gabriel, a division rival was facing a quarterback crisis of their own.

In Cincinnati, the Bengals began to grow desperate after losing star quarterback Joe Burrow. Jake Browning took over, and it has been a disaster so far. In four games Browning has thrown eight interceptions and just six touchdowns, despite having one of the best receiving cores in the league.

The Browns made the right decision, striking while the iron was hot. They offered Cincinnati Flacco and a sixth round pick, getting a fifth in return.

The trade makes perfect sense for Cleveland. Flacco was unlikely to retake the field, and this way the Browns still get a little value for the 40-year-old quarterback on the verge of retirement.

Now it becomes evaluation time in Cleveland. Gabriel will no longer have a safety net if the team begins to underperform again. Instead, it shows the team is fully in on him and ready for him to make the leap.

The trade also opens the door for Shedeur Sanders to take over as the backup. Sanders, who has been a media focal point since Gabriel was named the starter, will be one step closer to taking the field for the first time himself.

It shocked many fans when the Browns opted to draft two quarterbacks in this year's draft, but now it makes more sense. The Browns are searching for the guy, and opted to grab the value while it was there. They were hoping to find a steal of a quarterback late in the draft, and now they’ll be able to see if they’ve done it.

Gabriel will still be the guy for the foreseeable future, but he begins to fall flat, it seems likely Sanders will be stepping in this season.

It also allowed for the coaching staff to evaluate at practice, something fans often seem to forget. Sanders will take plenty of reps against the Browns first team now. This time can still help Cleveland make the determination on if Sanders is worth keeping around.

There is one more quarterback the Browns need to evaluate, and it helps further explain the decision to move off Flacco… Deshaun Watson.

The Browns still owe Watson plenty of money. He has spent this offseason and beginning of the season recovering from the torn achilles. Now he’s getting healthy. He is expected to return from injury reserve soon. The Browns couldn’t justify keeping four quarterbacks on the roster.

They were always going to have to get rid of one. If Flacco was impressive this year, it was likely going to be a rookie. Watson is simply too expensive to release and has no real trade value.

Watson is on year four of his five year contract. This may be the make-or-break season for him. If he performs, either on the field or in practice, the Browns may keep him for another year. There are definitely still voices in Cleveland who believe Watson can turn it around.

If Watson struggles, this may be it for him here. With two cheap quarterbacks, and possibly another one in the draft, the Browns could justify releasing Watson next season and eating the cap hit.

Until Watson officially comes back from IR, it seems likely that Bailey Zappe could take over the emergency quarterback role from the practice squad. While it’s unlikely he plays this year or sticks around long term, he is another name to watch.

Trading Flacco, who clearly wasn’t a part of the long term plan, was the right plan for the Browns. It may hurt some fans now, but getting value out of bench players, and getting evaluation for the future is never a bad thing. The Cleveland Browns made the right decision, something that doesn’t always happen.