To no one’s surprise, Joe Flacco has been named the starting quarterback for the Cleveland Browns. Except maybe for Shedeur Sanders fans. It’s no secret that Shedeur Sanders is the Browns quarterback to perform the best so far during the preseason. However, for analysts and people in the industry, it was pretty clear that the veteran Super Bowl champion would be the starter for the Browns in 2025.
𝗕𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴: The Browns are naming Joe Flacco as their Week 1 starting quarterback against the Bengals.
Shedeur Sanders time will come ⌚️ pic.twitter.com/fYbVFrYqzk
— Dov Kleiman (@NFL_DovKleiman) August 18, 2025
Fans reacted to the news, with some drawing parallels to another rookie and veteran situation from a few years back:
“Shedeur Sanders sitting behind Flacco feels like Patrick Mahomes once sitting behind Alex Smith. Bookmark it, Dov.” Wrote one fan
“He’s the best QB for now. Let Sanders sit behind a vet for awhile and learn” Mentioned another fan
Some fans seemed unsurprised.
“We all knew they would start the season QB1: Flacco QB2: Gabriel QB3: Sanders” Said another person
“Shedeur is probably QB3” Pointed out someone else
Did you know that Joe Flacco had already played five years in the NFL when he won the Super Bowl?
“Joe Flacco is starting a 2025 NFL season game… we might actually be in a simulation.” Said a truly surprised fan
This will be Joe Flacco’s second stint with the Cleveland Browns. He was with he team in 2023, starting five games for the team and leading them to a 4-1 record in that period. He joined the team late in the season after Deshaun Watson suffered a season-ending injury. After backup Dorian Thompson-Robinson also got injured, he became the starter and helped the team secure its first playoff berth in three years.
They eventually lost to the Houston Texans in the Wild Card round, which was Flacco’s first playoff start since 2015. He was named the NFL Comeback Player of the Year by the AP.
Cleveland Browns’ Kevin Stefanski on Joe Flacco’s strengths during the preseason
Speaking with the press last week, Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski sang Joe Flacco’s praises. It seems the coach appreciates the veteran’s steady approach to playing the game:
“Joe’s the same guy that he was then,” Stefanski said on Aug.13. “He’s the same guy every single day. I think that’s one of the things you admire about Joe is how he approaches his business. He’s done a really nice job in camp. He’s also done a really nice job just providing leadership to the quarterback room, to the offense and to the football team.”
The Browns will open up their season against the Cincinnati Bengals on September 7th at 1:00 pm ET. Before that, they have to play their last preseason game against the Los Angeles Rams on Saturday.
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