Last years Browns savior, the ageless Joe Flacco got a new job this week with the Indianapolis Colts and is not coming back to the Browns. I love what Flacco did last year as he took us on a fun ride that got us into the playoffs. I am also glad for Browns nation that he is not coming back. Don't get me wrong, he could be on my team, but I don't run the Browns. Guys that are trying to stay employed are. And their future is 100% tied to Deshaun Watson.
When the Browns were convinced to give Watson all that guaranteed money, they lost all previous recent identity and took on a new one. Giving up and at the same time restarting the short term future by banking on Watson. Flacco made us fans happy and made the Browns team look great. He made the front office look real bad. His ability to make this offense look that good in a week or two was a real wake up call for all. The same players, same game, way different result with a real adult at the helm. We've haven't looked that good with anyone in 20 years. His remarkable play, made a lot of people very nervous. A guy off the couch, 39 years old, paying him NFL pennies.
Having Flacco back has no benefit. This fan base would be screaming at the stadium for Flacco to play the first sign of a struggling offense. It would divide the fans loudly, the locker room quietly, coaching staff privately, and the local and national media endlessly. And that would only be because of how well Flacco played and made us look, and how he made us feel. You see, with the Browns job keeping seekers leaders, it's not really about winning. It's about winning with Watson. They're firing successful coaches for it, and making everything just so. So a new backup has been signed and the pressure is off. We, and he, won't be hearing Flacco's name being chanted by 70,000 when we don't play well.
I'm not saying Flacco is the answer because he's 39 years old, and does have a limit. But here I feel there would be no mentoring wanted, accepted or even tolerated. Joe is too good a dude not to be respected and looked up to, he is a Superbowl Champion, and a very good human. He now is in a great place, backing up a very young QB who needs mentoring and needs to learn to stay healthy, as he too is coming off shoulder surgery. I feel there's a very good chance Flacco plays a lot for the Colts this year. Flacco, indoors, warm, on a fast track with some nice young players, could be fun. If he would have signed here, he would never, ever see the field unless we had the same situation as last year.
And that's what this year will be about. Watson will play every single game, even if we are the worst team in the league. That won't happen clearly, but this is where we are. The Browns will ride with him no matter what, and now they can with no Joe on the sidelines. The path has been cleared. If a backup is needed for most of the season, the Browns are not going anywhere. BUT if a backup is needed for a few weeks to win important games that could get you in the playoffs? There's no Joe.
The Browns have put themselves in a very tough situation. Almost everything they are doing is just buying more time for themselves. New coaches, new offense, be patient, new way of doing things, these things take time, all that word salad stuff they are famous for. Many, just trying to stay employed and hoping they haven't wasted a quarter of a BILLION dollars on a single guy and traded away the teams future. There is only one way out for them. A Superbowl title - especially before the Texans who we have done an amazing job rebuilding. If that doesn't happen in the next three years, they will all be out. For the next three years, here it's not about winning per say. It's about them being right.
Sadly for fans, Joe had to go. Good luck Joe, and thanks!
