When Joe Flacco first stepped into the Browns’ locker room in late 2023, the offense didn’t just see a veteran quarterback. Indeed, they saw an opportunity. And maybe, for the first time in a long time, trust. The Browns were already bruised and battered. Deshaun Watson was out. The offense had no identity. Then came Flacco, the Super Bowl MVP nobody expected to still have this much juice. But in that chaos, he also found another soldier to build something real. The kind of chemistry that doesn’t show up on the stat sheet until it suddenly does. Because boy, did it show up.
In the five games with Flacco under center, TE David Njoku exploded. He racked up 390 receiving yards and four touchdowns, averaging 6 catches and 78 yards per game, a massive jump from the 42.9 YPG he averaged in the first 12 weeks of the season. That stretch included a 10-reception, 104-yard, one-TD masterpiece in Week 15 vs. Chicago. It was the peak of a QB-TE duo decimating the rivals.
Bleacher Report‘s Gary Davenport highlighted this connection recently, with high hopes of a stellar season for the tight end. He noted, “If that (QB) carousel settles on (Joe) Flacco for any period of time, it’s worth noting he peppered Njoku with targets when he was in Cleveland two years ago.” You could feel it. This wasn’t just box score fluff. These were game-changing plays.
David Njoku could be the biggest winner if Flacco takes over again. pic.twitter.com/O7AxDOYNDn
— BrownsNation.com (@BrownsNationcom) June 28, 2025
In the Browns’ Week 14 win over the Jaguars, the duo connected six times for 91 yards and 2 scores. That night, it felt like Flacco and Njoku could’ve walked into any playoff stadium and lit it up. Flacco helped Njoku with his one and only Pro Bowl appearance. If Flacco plays and they replicate their 2023 plays, that will also help him get an extension on his current $54.7 million contract, which is ending its final year in 2025.
Flacco went to the Colts in 2024. But the ripple effect remains. Njoku ended the 2023 season with 81 catches, 882 yards, and six TDs—all career highs. He finally looked like the elite TE the Browns drafted back in 2017. And while Kevin Stefanski and Andrew Berry will say it’s part of the natural progression, deep down, they know Joe Flacco was the spark. But will he get a chance this year?
Browns might not play Joe Flacco this year
The Cleveland Browns head into the quiet stretch before training camp with anything but peace inside their quarterback room. What was supposed to be a straightforward battle between veteran Joe Flacco and rookie Shedeur Sanders has turned chaotic. According to former NFL receiver T.J. Houshmandzadeh, the real competition isn’t where most of the media has looked. “Someone inside the building, who is not a player, told me it’s really coming down to Kenny Pickett or Dillon Gabriel,” Houshmandzadeh revealed on the Nightcap show.
That comment sent shockwaves through league circles, and more importantly, through Sanders’ camp. Sanders is reportedly uneasy, not because of his performance, but because of the shifting narrative. Meanwhile, Joe Flacco, the only quarterback who’s actually won games for the Browns, appears to be fading into the background. He went 4–1 in 2023 and led them to the playoffs, but that’s being overshadowed by a youth movement.
While Kevin Stefanski continues to stress that “we’re so far away from that type of thought process,” referring to naming a starter, the decisions behind closed doors may suggest otherwise. “Right now, that’s not our focus,” Stefanski said during minicamp. “Honestly, we’re in our installation phase. It’s the offseason, it’s OTAs.” But for the quarterbacks, every snap matters, and so does perception. And right now, the perception is changing fast.
The current waves may leave both Flacco and Sanders on the outside looking in.
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