The Browns continue to win and you can start making your playoff plans. Tonight the Jets come to town for a Thursday Night Game. The players don't like this short week stuff, and I will be glad when it's over and Joe Flacco is still upright and not hurt. The Jets have a great, physical defense that could make things tough on the Browns. But the Browns should win this game.
Lots of talk on social media about the Browns and Flacco. Lots of "Too many interceptions," and that kind of thing. Granted, I am not thrilled about those either. But we're throwing the ball about a thousand times a game and asking a guy who was just Netflixing on his couch to do it. I'd love to see more balance. There's also some of "The other QB's were successful too, let's not forget that.." Truth is, we have forgotten that. Not because we meant to, it's not top of mind this minute. Plus, those many of those games were won by the lights out defense.
Be all that as it may, Flacco is here, he's in charge and this is his team right this second. Flacco is the perfect example of what I have felt for years. I know, he is not the "New kind of QB," that's in vogue right now. A guy that can pass, rush the ball, and make extreme plays that are great for Sportscenter or YouTube, or for some young network play-by-play guy to scream at the top of his lungs some stupid catch phrase he hopes ends up on those platforms for eternity. Flacco in many people's minds is a throw-back. Truth is, he's not at all. He's the kind of guy who wins championships in this league. Big, tall pocket passers who extend a play just enough and most important of all, they stay healthy. The list of these QB's is long, Brady, Montana, Bradshaw, Manning, Sims, Staubach, Mahomes to a degree, Williams, Elway, Roethlisberger, Favre, Rodgers, ......and Flacco. And a ton more.
The Browns sort of fell into this whole thing. I'm not at all sold of them thinking Flacco was going to play much, or be this good. Truth is, Flacco has surprised everyone. But the Browns came into this season with the Superbowl on their minds. And they also came into this season with a big question of how would the guy at the controls play. And to add to that, a backup that was well over his head. And another guy that had a limit, signed out of need. The organization was not fair to any of them or the rest of the team, or us fans. I was confounded at the time this was their plan. Then injuries, bad play and a season starting to slip away, they called Flacco when there were ZERO options left to them.
What is happening now has everything to do with knowledge of human beings and I will not give the Browns organization that credit. The PLAYERS were looking for a leader, and with Flacco playing so well, these guys want to follow him. They bought in, and are going with Joe no matter where this goes. And why not? He is EXACTLY what this team needed. It is so clear the PLAYERS were looking for his kind of leadership, and they started following him from the first play of the Rams game. I also have never seen Stefanski so relaxed and happy as he is now.
How far can this team go? As far as the great defense will take them. Sure Flacco is playing well right now, and he does have championship pedigree. I have no doubt that Flacco will play as well as can be expected. And if he does that, and this defense does what it can do, the Browns are a very tough draw in the playoffs, especially how the AFC is shaking out right now. The road to get to this point has been riddled with bones real difficulty and setbacks and still, here we are.
But when you know guys like Joe, I think the real key is this. Putting the Browns way aside for a minute. HE has landed right where HE is supposed to be right now, and that's making all the difference. For any of us in life, it settles us in our center when we know we are in the right place in the world, at the right moment, for the right reasons, with the right person. And right now, that's the peace Joe Flacco is experiencing.
How on earth, did we get so lucky?
