The Cleveland Browns fell to the Cincinnati Bengals in Week 1 of the 2025 regular season by a final score of 17-16, but in a welcome change, the loss was not due to the play of the quarterback. Joe Flacco charted out quite well, independent of the performance of his receivers.
What is Throw Accuracy Charting?
The main goal with throw charting is not to provide a comprehensive silver bullet of a metric to gauge whether a QB is good or bad. It is merely one tool in the toolbox with which to do so, and it has both its usefulness and its own limitations. It doesn't account for decision-making, nor does it factor in degree of difficulty. The grading criteria are as follows:
Elite - A rare throw that displays impeccable ball placement, typically further downfield.
Accurate - A ball (complete or incomplete) that is well-placed, not simply catchable or a completion.
Neutral - shovel passes, most screens, poor throws while being hit, and negative plays that aren't the QB's fault beyond a shadow of a doubt.
Inaccurate - A ball that is placed poorly, but likely still catchable.
Bad - A pass that is uncatchable and unusually inaccurate.
New for the 2025 season is distance context, broken up into four sections; behind the line of scrimmage, within 10 yards, 10 to 20 yards, and 20+ yards. This adds further detail to these numbers and gives a measure of not only how frequently the QB is making throws downfield, but how effective he is at making them catchable.
Additionally, the box score attempts/completions may not always line up with the total amount of throws charted - this is because throws nullified by penalty are included for charting purposes.
Flacco officially attempted 45 passes, completing 31 of them for 290 yards, one touchdown, and two interceptions. Per Pro Football Focus, his adjusted completion percentage was an impressive 85.4%, and he kept the ball out of harm's way, avoiding any risky throws.