Joe Flacco came off his couch to re-enter the ranks of NFL quarterbacks just a few weeks back. Following his second start for the Cleveland Browns, which came in a Week 14 defeat of the Jacksonville Jaguars, he’s already trailing just two men for career wins by a starting quarterback in Cleveland Browns Stadium.
In one fell swoop, that’s a commentary on Flacco’s history as a quarterback within the AFC North, a look at the historical state of the Browns’ quarterback situation and a dose of optimism moving forward as Cleveland looks to put the clamps on a playoff berth for the first time since 2020.
Flacco Trails Only 2 Men for Wins as a Starting QB in Cleveland Browns Stadium
Joe Flacco now has 10 wins as a starter in Cleveland Browns Stadium, tying him for the third-most by any quarterback since the stadium opened in 1999.
The not-so-creatively-named Cleveland Browns Stadium opened its doors in 1999 at 100 Alfred Lerner Way. It had a different name (FirstEnergy Stadium) from 2013-22 before going back to the original moniker for the 2023 NFL season.
The grass surface has hosted 204 official games, and the Browns have posted a regular-season record of 82-116-1 within the friendly confines, per Pro Football Reference. Given that distinctly losing record, plenty of opposing quarterbacks have had opportunities to rack up victories at a twice-a-year cadence. Flacco was one of them thanks to his lengthy tenure as the starting signal-caller for the Baltimore Ravens.
On December 10, though, the 38-year-old had a chance to put on the home uniform for the first time.
And he delivered.
Flacco outplayed Trevor Lawrence, who was working through a quick return from a high-ankle sprain, by completing 26 of 45 passes for 311 yards, three touchdowns and an interception. He took just one sack for four yards, and his lost fumble on the play couldn’t put a damper on the overall performance that led to a 31-27 victory over the AFC South frontrunners, pushing Cleveland’s record to 8-5.
In the process, Flacco moved into a tie for third, per Stathead, with his 10th career W at Cleveland Browns Stadium:
- Baker Mayfield: 18
- Ben Roethlisberger: 12
- Derek Anderson and Joe Flacco: 10
- Tim Couch: 8
- Andy Dalton and Brian Hoyer: 6
- Peyton Manning: 5
Ben Roethlisberger’s presence near the top of the pack isn’t particularly encouraging since the strong-armed quarterback only suited up for the Pittsburgh Steelers throughout his NFL career. The same would be true of Flacco, who recorded nine victories for the opposition, except that the narrative has done a complete 180 now that he’s wearing what Cleveland faithful perceive as the proper colors.
Flacco now has Cleveland Browns Stadium Victories for 3 Different Franchises
Flacco’s first victory in Cleveland Browns Stadium came back in 2008 during a 37-27 victory for the Baltimore Ravens, and he’s now checked the “W” box for three different franchises:
- Baltimore Ravens 37, Cleveland Browns 27 on November 2, 2008
- Baltimore Ravens 16, Cleveland Browns 0 on November 16, 2009
- Baltimore Ravens 20, Cleveland Browns 10 on December 26, 2010
- Baltimore Ravens 24, Cleveland Browns 10 on December 4, 2011
- Baltimore Ravens 25, Cleveland Browns 15 on November 4, 2012
- Baltimore Ravens 23, Cleveland Browns 21 on September 21, 2014
- Baltimore Ravens 25, Cleveland Browns 20 on September 18, 2016
- Baltimore Ravens 27, Cleveland Browns 10 on December 17, 2017
- New York Jets 31, Cleveland Browns 30 on September 18, 2022
- Cleveland Browns 31, Jacksonville Jaguars 27 on December 10, 2023
The Browns have to be breathing a sigh of relief that Cleveland’s name is finally listed first on one of the victories.
“Well, obviously it feels good when it looks like people have confidence in you,” Flacco said after getting the victory at Jacksonville’s expense, per Zac Jackson of The Athletic. “I know I’ve been in a bunch of locker rooms, but whenever you walk into a locker room, you still want to gain the respect of everybody and you don’t know if you quite have that until you can go out there and get a win and continue to do it day in and day out. You try to carry yourself the right way and you try to do all the right things, but that doesn’t guarantee anything in terms of going out on the field on Sunday. So, it feels awesome to go out there and get the win.”
It probably also feels awesome that Flacco is now officially the Browns’ starting quarterback moving forward, putting to bed any speculation about a Dorian Thompson-Robinson return or any other sort of quarterback controversy.
That’s the power of a victory; only a few hours lapsed between head coach Kevin Stefanski not publicly naming the veteran as the starter before the Jacksonville game and him making the announcement right after the contest.
How High Can Flacco Rise on the Victories List?
GettyCleveland Browns quarterback Joe Flacco warms up before facing the Jacksonville Jaguars.
As a necessary piece of context, the leaderboard does include both regular-season and postseason victories, if only because the Browns have never hosted a playoff game since their current stadium opened for business. They’ve only made the playoffs twice after resuming their status as an NFL franchise in 1999, losing to the Steelers on the road in the Wild-Card Round during the 2002 season and then playing a pair of road contests in 2020.
Cleveland is sitting pretty as the fifth seed in the AFC following the defeat of Jacksonville, and it has a one-game cushion on the Steelers, Indianapolis Colts, Houston Texans, Denver Broncos, Cincinnati Bengals and Buffalo Bills.
However, it trails the Ravens by two games in the AFC North and would need to surpass the division leaders to host a first-round playoff matchup. Closing that gap is technically possible with four weeks left on the schedule—albeit with no remaining head-to-head clashes since the two have already split their series—but it’s unlikely.
The safer bet is on Flacco having two more starts at home: a Week 15 contest with the 5-8 Chicago Bears and a Week 17 clash with the 5-8 New York Jets.
Cleveland should be heavily favored in both contests, especially given how the offense has looked with Flacco at the helm. The Browns are also 6-1 at home this season, and the defense has looked anything but “burned out” when playing in front of a raucous home crowd.
That would push Flacco out of the tie with Derek Anderson and into a tie for second with Roethlisberger. Baker Mayfield and his 18 victories at Cleveland Browns Stadium are out of reach unless he overcomes the longest of long odds by returning for the 2024 season as a 39-year-old and somehow winning the job over a healthy Deshaun Watson.
Second will have to do.
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Joe Flacco Already Has 3rd-Most Wins in Cleveland Browns Stadium History