Ice-cold Joe Flacco reacts to beating out Shedeur Sanders
After the Cleveland Browns named Joe Flacco as their starting quarterback over Shedeur Sanders, he had an icy response.
Last week, Cleveland Browns coach Kevin Stefanski named Joe Flacco as the starting quarterback for the 2025-26 season. It was always believed he had it in the bag, but now it’s official. Still, there was some thought that maybe one of the Browns’ rookies, Dillon Gabriel and Shedeur Sanders, could compete for the spot too.
Flacco gives no-nonsense verdict after beating out Shedeur
At 40 years old, the veteran gave an ice-cold response to the decision to start him as the Browns’ QB1, calling it “business as usual” and emphasizing preparation over emotion. Here was his exact statement:
“Listen, it’s just business as usual,” Flacco said. “Go out there and get another good practice in, get some rest with the guys and continue to work towards what we’ve been all training camp...Like I said, you keep your head down and you just try to do your best, and I felt like I was having a good camp with the reps that I was given, and that’s all you can do.”
“I don’t know if I was very emotional about it, but listen, you don’t take for granted opportunities in this league, especially to get one at this point in my career is definitely special, but like I said, it’s pretty much business as usual and just kind of trying to get better,” he said.
Flacco is taking his first preseason snaps against the Los Angeles Rams in Cleveland’s final preseason game, before he faces a familiar challenge in their regular-season opener at Baltimore, where he won his lone Super Bowl with the Ravens.
Despite a young QB room, Flacco has made it clear his focus is on playing - not mentoring - as the Browns chase early-season success.
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