After a decade with the Baltimore Ravens, it seemed that Joe Flacco's journey as an NFL starter was all but over. But since leaving the team, the veteran quarterback has embarked on a remarkable journeyman's tour, where he has succeeded at nearly every stop and become a fan favorite everywhere he goes.
The oldest active player in the NFL has defied Father Time, playing at a high level, which included him being named the 2023 AP Comeback Player of the Year with the Cleveland Browns.
After a year away from the team, Flacco returned, earning his second stint as the Browns' starter for the 2025 season. So, how did Flacco's unlikely path lead him back to Cleveland? Here's a look at his career timeline.
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Joe Flacco NFL teams timeline
Baltimore Ravens (2008-2018)
Flacco's career began with the Ravens, who took the quarterback out of Delaware with the 18th overall pick in the 2008 NFL Draft.
Flacco became the Ravens' starter from Day 1. He immediately flipped Baltimore's record from 5-11 during the 2007 season to 11-5 in 2008, leading the Ravens to the AFC Championship Game as a rookie.
That success would end up being a sign of things to come for Flacco's career in Baltimore. Flacco engineered seven winning seasons in his 11 years with the Ravens, reaching the playoffs six times.
He won his lone Super Bowl appearance in 2012, taking home Super Bowl MVP honors as Baltimore beat San Francisco for the title. He also reached the AFC Championship Game three times.
Flacco owns the Ravens' franchise records with 38,245 passing yards and 212 passing touchdowns. He is Baltimore's all-time passing leader by over 20,000 yards and all-time passing touchdowns leader by just under 100.
Flacco suffered a hip injury during the 2018 season, paving the way for Lamar Jackson to take over as the future of the Ravens' franchise.
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Denver Broncos (2019)
Once it became clear that Jackson was the present and future in Baltimore, the Ravens traded Flacco to the Broncos for a fourth-round pick in the 2019 NFL Draft.
Flacco started his first eight games for Denver but he suffered a season-ending neck injury in Week 8. He went 2-6 as the Broncos' starter, throwing for 1,822 yards, six touchdowns and five interceptions.
Rookie QB Drew Lock eventually took over the starting job and the Broncos released Flacco at the end of the season with a failed physical designation.
Flacco underwent neck surgery during the 2020 offseason then signed a one-year, $1.5 million deal with the Jets.
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New York Jets (2020-2022)
Flacco was brought on to be Sam Darnold's backup with the Jets, but a shoulder injury forced the veteran QB into an interim starting role in 2020. Flacco ended up playing five games with the Jets in the 2020 season, throwing for 864 yards, six touchdowns and three interceptions.
He signed a one-year, $3.5 million deal with the Eagles in the 2021 offseason to be Jalen Hurts' backup, but Flacco never suited up for Philly. The Eagles traded Flacco back to the Jets for a 2022 sixth-round pick during the 2021 season to be a guiding hand for struggling rookie starter Zach Wilson.
After Wilson suffered a knee injury in the 2022 preseason, Flacco would end up re-signing with the Jets for the 2022 season. Wilson was out for the first three games of the year, and Flacco started these three games; this included starting against the Ravens for the first time, and the week after, leading an infamous Jets comeback over his future team, Cleveland.
He also made two starts at the end of the year for New York, due to Wilson's struggles and quarterback Mike White's injury.
In three seasons with the Jets, Flacco owned a 1-8 record with 2,253 passing yards, 14 touchdowns and six interceptions.
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Cleveland Browns (2023)
The Jets elected to let Flacco walk in free agency after the 2022 season. To the surprise of many, they reportedly never called him after star QB Aaron Rodgers suffered a season-ending Achilles injury in Week 1 and Wilson continued to struggle after that.
New York's trash turned into Cleveland's treasure, as Flacco gave the Browns life in a season that was plagued with quarterback struggles. Deshaun Watson suffered a season-ending shoulder injury and, backups PJ Walker and Dorian Thompson-Robinson never commanded control of the offense.
The Browns signed Flacco in Week 12 and he took over as the starter in Week 13. After losing his first start, Flacco led the team to four straight wins, throwing for at least 300 yards in every contest. Cleveland finished the season 11-6 and was the No. 5 seed in the AFC.
Cleveland went on to lose in the AFC Wildcard round against the Houston Texans, 45-14. Flacco threw for 307 yards, a touchdown and two interceptions. The Browns took a 14-10 lead, but the Texans were able to rattle off 35 unanswered points to put an end to the Browns' season.
Flacco was named the 2023 AP Comeback Player of the Year at the NFL Honors.
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Indianapolis Colts (2024)
The following free agency, the Browns opted not to bring back Flacco, putting their faith in Watson for the 2024 season.
In March 2024, he signed with the Indianapolis Colts on a one-year deal. Flacco was expected to be the backup for second-year quarterback Anthony Richardson, who Indianapolis drafted fourth overall in the 2023 NFL Draft.
Richardson once again dealt with injuries in 2024, and Flacco started seven games for the Colts throughout the season. He finished with 1,761 yards, 12 touchdowns and seven interceptions.
Joe Flacco came in after Anthony Richardson got injured:
π 16/26
π 168 yards
π 2 TD
Joe Cool. Joe Reliable. pic.twitter.com/hRizj3deIa
β NFL (@NFL) September 29, 2024
Flacco also made an appearance for Indianapolis against the Houston Texans at NRG Stadium, but only for a few plays, because Richardson took himself out of the game for "being tired."
#Colts QB Anthony Richardson on taking himself out of the game in the 3rd quarter: βTired, I ainβt gonna lie. That was a lot of running right there that I did ... So, I just told Shane (Steichen) I needed a break right there.β
(π₯ @WISHNews8)pic.twitter.com/5DiUalDXDU
β Ari Meirov (@MySportsUpdate) October 27, 2024
Flacco finished with a 3-4 record as a starter with the Colts.
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Cleveland Browns (2025)
After one season in Indianapolis, Flacco once again signed with the Browns in the 2025 offseason.
Going into the 2025 season, Cleveland had one of the most interesting quarterback situations in the league: Watson was recovering from an achilles injury, the Browns signed Kenny Pickett on a one-year deal, and drafted two quarterbacks in Dillon Gabriel and Shedeur Sanders in the 2025 NFL Draft.
In training camp, the Browns had four active quarterbacks in Flacco, Pickett, Gabriel and Sanders. Flacco was named the starter in mid-August; Cleveland went on to trade Pickett to the Las Vegas Raiders, and Gabriel was named Flacco's top backup with Sanders as QB3.
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How old is Joe Flacco?
Flacco was born on Jan. 16, 1985, making hiim 40 years old for the 2025 season. Flacco is the second-oldest starting quarterback in the league, behind only Aaron Rodgers.
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Joe Flacco career stats
Here's a look at Joe Flacco's stats throughout his NFL career.
Year Team Completion % Passing yards TDs INTs
2008 Ravens 60.0 2,971 14 12
2009 Ravens 63.1 3,613 21 12
2010 Ravens 62.6 3,622 25 10
2011 Ravens 57.6 3,610 20 12
2012 Ravens 59.7 3,817 22 10
2013 Ravens 59.0 3,912 19 22
2014 Ravens 62.1 3,986 27 12
2015 Ravens 64.4 2,791 14 12
2016 Ravens 64.9 4,317 20 15
2017 Ravens 64.1 3,141 18 13
2018 Ravens 61.2 2,465 12 6
2019 Broncos 65.3 1,822 6 5
2020 Jets 55.2 864 6 3
2021 Jets 64.3 338 3 0
2022 Jets 57.6 1,051 5 3
2023 Browns 60.3 1,616 13 8
2024 Colts 65.3 1,761 12 7
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Joe Flacco awards and accolades
Throughout his NFL career, Flacco has picked up some individual recognitions, along with a championship.
Super Bowl XLVII champion
Super Bowl XLVII MVP
2023 NFL Comeback Player of the Year
Holds NFL record β along with Patrick Mahomes and Kurt Warner β with 11 passing touchdowns in a single postseason
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Joe Flacco NFL highlights
The veteran quarterback has had many memorable moments throughout his NFL career. Below are just a few, which features Flacco on all of his different teams.
Baltimore Ravens
With the Ravens, Flacco threw for 38,245 yards, 212 touchdowns and 136 interceptions. He famously led Baltimore to its second Super Bowl title, where the Ravens defeated the San Francisco 49ers 34-31. In his single Super Bowl appearance, Super Bowl XLVII, Joe Flacco completed 22 of 33 passes for 287 yards and three touchdowns, with one interception.
Joe Flaccoβs Super Bowl run in 2012 was truly something special.
- 1,140 yards
- 11 touchdowns
- 0 interceptions
- 117.2 passer rating
- 100% ELITE
pic.twitter.com/Iei4blvU1f
β Dylan (@PowellAnalytics) January 12, 2024
Flacco's 2012 playoff run included beating both Peyton Manning and Tom Brady on the road.
In honor of it being Bengals week for the Ravens, hereβs a video of Joe Flacco connecting with Steve Smith Sr. on an incredible 80-yard touchdown strike that featured a nasty stiff arm pic.twitter.com/ZbAgJN5rqg
β Kevin Oestreicher (@koestreicher34) December 21, 2021
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New York Jets
Over three seasons with the Jets, Flacco had some highlight-reel plays.
Joe Flacco dropped this in the bucket π
Jets go 50 yards for six! (via @NFL) pic.twitter.com/cylcFbCGQ6
β NFL on ESPN (@ESPNNFL) November 10, 2020
FLACCO TO WILSON FOR THE JETS LEAD π±
(via @nyjets)pic.twitter.com/5pQpxGqRs6
β SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) September 18, 2022
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Cleveland Browns, 2023
Flacco balled out with Cleveland in 2023, winning NFL Comeback Player of the Year.
JOE FLACCO. AMARI COOPER. 75 YARD TD.
This duo is BALLING.
πΊ: #CLEvsHOU on CBS
π±: Stream on #NFLPlus https://t.co/UIg1XAjsX3 pic.twitter.com/r8HXAunSkr
β NFL (@NFL) December 24, 2023
JOE FLACCO WITH HIS 3RD TD PASS OF THE HALF βΌοΈ
(via @NFL)pic.twitter.com/QVd7nNS8FF
β Sports Illustrated (@SInow) December 29, 2023
Flacco to Njoku for a 34-yard TD π₯
(via @NFL) pic.twitter.com/WfpuSDaF8v
β FOX Sports: NFL (@NFLonFOX) December 10, 2023
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Indianapolis Colts, 2024
FLACCO TO PIERCE FOR A 65-YARD TD TO TIE IT.
JOE FLACCO MAGIC.
πΊ: #INDvsJAX on CBS/Paramount+
π±: https://t.co/waVpO8ZBqG pic.twitter.com/8Ce2qHZYMw
β NFL (@NFL) October 6, 2024
Flacco dials up a touchdown to Downs!
πΊ: #INDvsTEN on CBS/Paramount+
π±: https://t.co/waVpO909ge pic.twitter.com/tOWcRbzz0M
β NFL (@NFL) October 13, 2024
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Cleveland Browns, 2025
Cedric Tillman touchdown & the Browns lead. Joe Flacco has had time & is making throws.
Logan Wilson is back in the locker room and being evaluated for a concussion. Likely Knight Jr - Burks - Carter the rest of the way. pic.twitter.com/PS6shDUZng
β Charlie Clifford (@char_cliff) September 7, 2025