Cleveland Browns DVOA, Stats, & NFL Rankings

Cleveland Browns quarterback Joe Flacco was named the 2023 NFL Comeback Player of the Year on Thursday. Flacco was a free agent for most of the season before the Browns signed him late in the year due to a season-ending injury to starter Deshaun Watson (shoulder). The 39-year-old eventually won the starting job and went 4-1 down the stretch to lead the team to the postseason. In those five starts, he threw for 1,616 yards, 13 touchdowns and eight interceptions before the team ultimately lost in the wild-card round of the playoffs. The 2023 resurgence has given Flacco the passion to continue playing in 2024. It's uncertain if Cleveland will actually re-sign him, but Flacco's performance this past season should at least have the Browns considering him as insurance again for Watson.

Cleveland Browns quarterback Joe Flacco, who is a Comeback Player of the Year finalist, intends to play next season in the NFL. Flacco is an impending free agent and will most likely have to settle for a backup role. However, the 39-year-old proved that he can still lead an offense after taking over under center in Cleveland in Week 13 and leading the team to a playoff berth in the absence of Deshaun Watson (shoulder). The Browns came up short in the wild-card round against the Houston Texans, but Flacco surpassed expectations, throwing for 1,616 yards, 13 touchdowns and eight interceptions in five starts to close out the year. It's possible the Browns re-sign Flacco to serve as insurance for Watson, but either way, Flacco isn't going to be on the fantasy radar to begin the 2024 season.

During a Monday media availability, Cleveland Browns general manager Andrew Berry said the team is open to bringing quarterback Joe Flacco back for the 2024 season. The 39-year-old signed with Cleveland's practice squad in late November, following Deshaun Watson's season-ending shoulder injury. Quarterbacks P.J. Walker and Dorian Thompson-Robinson struggled, so Flacco was brought in as veteran competition. Flacco started five regular-season games this year, winning four of them while throwing for 1,616 yards, 13 touchdowns, and eight interceptions. He struggled in the AFC wild-card loss to the Houston Texans, throwing two pick-sixes. However, he showed he can still lead an offense. "We'd absolutely love to have Joe back, he's a good quarterback," Berry said. "I guess maybe a little bit similar to Jacoby Brissett last year. It depends, right? I want to bring all of our good players back, but there are constraints to that. Would have no problem having Joe back." It sounds like Flacco would be Watson's backup in 2024 if he's retained, but he'd be worth rostering in two-QB or superflex leagues, given Watson's recent slew of injury concerns.

Pittsburgh Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin said that quarterback Kenny Pickett will return as the team's starter next season but will definitely have competition. The Steelers want Mason Rudolph to provide the competition for Pickett, but "he's a free agent." Pickett was mostly underwhelming in his 12 starts in 2023 before injuring his ankle in Week 13 and never playing again the rest of the year as Rudolph eventually took over and led the team to three straight wins to close out the regular season to help the team clinch a playoff spot. Since being taken in the first round in 2022, the 25-year-old Pickett has completed only 62.6% of his pass attempts for 4,474 yards, 13 touchdowns and 13 interceptions in 25 games (24 starts). He's going to have to play a lot better during training camp and the preseason to beat out Rudolph or whoever the Steelers bring in to compete with him.

The Cleveland Browns are entering the offseason with the mindset that Deshaun Watson (shoulder) is their starting quarterback, head coach Kevin Stefanski told the media. The position proved to be a revolving door for the Browns this season as they started five different players. Walker started six of the Browns' nine games, completing 61.4 percent of his passes for 1,115 yards, seven touchdowns, and four interceptions. He also added 142 rushing yards, one rushing touchdown, and two lost fumbles. Several injuries to Watson, including a season-ending shoulder issue, prompted the Browns to experiment with P.J. Walker and Dorian Thompson-Robinson, but neither of them produced great results. Veteran Joe Flacco took over in Week 13 and would start the next five games before Jeff Driskel got the nod in the regular-season finale. Flacco completed 60.3 percent of his passes for 1,616 yards, 13 touchdowns, and eight interceptions. With that said, Flacco is set to hit free agency this offseason and the Browns will return to Watson once he's healthy, presumably due to the fact that they gave up six draft picks (including three first-rounders) for him and then signed him to a five-year, $230 million deal. He ranks as a fantasy QB2 heading into the 2024 campaign.