CLEVELAND, Ohio —— Joe Flacco got in and out of the “dress rehearsal” games against the Rams game healthy, with no interceptions and put a touchdown on the board in his three drives.
It came against the Rams’ backups, but it was good for Flacco to get some live action before he faces the Bengals at Huntington Bank Field on Sept. 7.
Named the starter for that game out of the four-way competition with Kenny Pickett, Dillon Gabriel and Shedeur Sanders, Flacco went 9-for-10 for 71 yards, with one touchdown and no picks en route to a 129.6 rating.
The touchdown was a 15-yard TD pass to rookie tight end Harold Fannin Jr. to put the Browns up 7-0 with 6:29 left in the first quarter. It capped a 7 play, 44-yard drive.
“It’s good that we did (played the starters) because you get through some of the little stuff that have to get through when you go back out on the field for the first time with live action,” Flacco said during the Browns telecast. “So I’m glad that we were able to get out there and get some plays under our belt today.”
Flacco’s lone incompletion was a drop by the normally surehanded Jerry Jeudy on the second play of the opening drive, on a short out route. It was a routine play that Jeudy can almost always be counted on to make.
“I don’t think it was anything perfect but to just get little completions, get the ball in guys hands and then just see what they can do with it. I mean you saw a little bit of that in the third down that I hit our back out of the backfield with and he, and he made a couple guys miss and you know, that’s what this game’s all about, getting in your playmakers hands and letting them go win the game for you.”
Flacco spent time between series talking to his linemen and skill players on the sidelines, just like he’s always done in his previous 17 seasons. His mindset and demeanor hasn’t changed since he was named the Week 1 starter on Monday.
“It’s going to be tough for me to admit there’s much of a difference,” he said. “You know, I think I kind of am who I am. I’m able to be that even without that title. But I think as far as the team’s concerned, it’s always good to have a guy that you can look at and know that he’s going to be the guy that’s under center for you. And I think it’s just a good way to give everybody confidence going into the season. Like I said, I’m going to be that same person no matter what. But yeah, it feels good to be able to look at the guys in the eye now knowing that I’m going to be out there with him on Sunday.”
Flacco noted that the Browns quarterback room has remained close throughout the competition. He was replaced in the second quarter by Dillon Gabriel, who ran a textbook two-minute drive at the end of the half that ended in a touchdown 3 yard TD pass to Gage Larvadain that made it 16-7 Browns. Dustin Hopkins pushed the extra point attempt wide left.
“It’s a special place,” Flacco said of the quarterback room. “You know, it’s one of the toughest positions to play in sports. So to have a room that you can kind of all go in and feel good about and, kind of bounce things off of each other and also just have good laughs and have good relationships with is important. And I probably do take that for granted a little bit. We’ve got a good room. We’ve got a lot of guys that like to have fun and a lot of guys that are learning football. They’re young and they’re anxious to learn, and it makes for a good environment and it keeps me on my toes and I’m loving every bit of it.”
Flacco acknowledged that his five school-age kids are enjoying that their 40-year-old dad won the starting job.
“I’ll be interested to see how much of it they watched or if they’re swimming or doing something like that,” he said. “They enjoy it. I don’t know if they’re going to tell me that, but they enjoy it. They’re enjoying every bit of this. Them enjoying it the way they are is one of the big reasons why I’m still able to do this and, and have so much fun with it. They make it that much more special.”
Flacco went three-and-out on his first drive, which is never a good thing when you’re playing against backups. But after a 4 yard run by Dylan Sampson on the opening play, Jerry Jeudy dropped a short out to the left. He popped up and clapped his hands in frustration.
On third and 6, Flacco found David Njoku for a 5-yard pass to the left, but he was unable to convert.
After the first-teamers settled in, they can back strong with a TD drive on their second possession after starting at the Rams’ 44. Following Sampson’s 14-yard catch and run to the Rams’ 14 to convert a third and long, Flacco found tight end Harold Fannin Jr. on the right side of the end zone for a 15-yard TD. The Browns used a two tight-end formation on the play, which will be a staple in their offense this season. Fannin was lined up alone on the right side, with three others in a trips formation on the right. Like he has all camp, he made the catch to put the Browns up 7-0.
The unfortunate thing about the drive was that starting center Ethan Pocic got rolled up on and went to the ground with a left knee injury. He walked to the medical tent with trainers, but was soon headed to the locker room, and ruled out for the game. He was replaced by Luke Wypler, who’s had a nice camp after recovering from his season-ending ankle injury from last season.
On Flacco’s third drive, he found Pierre Strong Jr. for an 18-yard pass play to convert a third and 8, and a 15-yard slant to Njoku on the next play. But the drive fizzled when Flacco was sacked two plays later. Unfortunately for the Browns, Strong left the game to be evaluated for a concussion and didn’t return.
Flacco was without starting receiver Cedric Tillman (thumb) and guard Joel Bitonio. But he had all of his other starting linemen until Pocic left with 7:21 left in the first quarter. The Browns also lost tight end Blake Whiteheart to a knee injury in the second quarter. Whiteheart was a lock to make the 53-man roster along with fellow tight ends Njoku and Fannin.
But Flacco did have new receiver Isaiah Bond at his disposal after only three days of practice. Bond ran some go routes, and will help stretch the defense in the opener.
“Anytime you bring that kind of speed to an offense, it can help a lot of things out,” Flacco said during the week. “Run game, short passing game. I think when you have a guy like Jerry on the other side who can really, we have a lot of confidence, can win against anybody. It makes it harder for defenses to pay more attention to him and things like that. So yeah, it can open up all kinds of possibilities.”
It’s now go-time for Flacco and the first-team offense.
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