Joe Flacco is back for another NFL campaign at 41. It’ll be his 19th season in the league, as he’s re-signing with the Cincinnati Bengals. It’s the same team he was traded to last year after Joe Burrow was injured.
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In reaction to finally being signed, Flacco had some words for other NFL franchises. He’s not mad to be back in Cincinnati, as he had one of the most productive stretches of his career there last year. However, he is a bit perturbed that his market lacked interest. “Believe me, I wish I was a guy somewhere. And I think teams are dumb for not having me be that guy,” Flacco told ESPN.
They were poignant words. One could tell that Flacco is pretty upset that some teams didn’t consider him to be the QB1 for their franchises. He could be talking about the New York Jets, Arizona Cardinals, or Miami Dolphins. However, in reaction to those comments, analyst and former player Shannon Sharpe went off on Flacco, saying that his time has come and gone.
Sharpe also argued that he’s never been considered “the guy” because he’s never been in the upper echelon of QBs. This led him to recount Flacco’s track record with his last four teams.
“Remember, he got off to a hot start in Cleveland, and then what happened? He wet the bed. He got off to that hot start in Cincinnati. What did he do, Ocho? Wet the bed. He got off to a hot start in Indy. What happened, Ocho? Wet the bed. Hot start with the Jets, wet the bed. Don’t you see a recurring theme?” Sharpe questioned on the Nightcap podcast.
Flacco’s play in recent years has been admirable for his age. But Sharpe is right, it’s nothing more than admirable. Despite playing excellently for a stretch last year, the magic eventually wore off, and he stagnated.
We’ve seen this same order of operations for Flacco with every team he’s joined in recent years. That’s why Chad Johnson agrees that the QB isn’t what he used to be.
“He’s not the same, Unc. At best, you’re a backup quarterback. And you’re a damn good backup quarterback,” Johnson opined. “He has to understand, realistically, he’s not the guy he used to be.”
In his past four years at the helm, Flacco has started in 25 games for four different teams. During that time, he’s gone 9-16. He’s still managed to throw 45 TDs to just 28 INTs. But the lack of winning stands out.
It all led Johnson to give Flacco a reality check.
“Being in your 30s, 19 plus years, and still playing at that position? You should be thankful you’re even on the goddamn roster.”
All Joe Flacco has done is wet the bed since leaving Baltimore. Unc says he’s delusional after calling every NFL team “dumb” @ShannonSharpe | @ochocinco | #Nightcap pic.twitter.com/eVTpnapOnV
— Nightcap (@NightcapShow_) March 26, 2026
All in all, Sharpe and Johnson are in the right here. At his age, Flacco should be happy that he was even considered as a backup option for any NFL team. He’s had to literally get up off his couch to get QB jobs in recent years. This is to say that he isn’t exactly the most sought-after player.
Still, Flacco is a great backup. He can carry the load in case Burrow needs to miss a game or two. He can also impart some wisdom to the young QB if they spend enough time together. It’s a quality signing.
