Browns Send Message on Joe Flacco After Loss to Rams

Getty Images Cleveland Browns head coach would not name Joe Flacco the starting quarterback going forward.

The Cleveland Browns have not committed to Joe Flacco as their starter going forward, despite his solid performance in a 36-19 loss to the Los Angeles Rams in Week 13.

Flacco finished the matchup 23-of-44 for 254 yards and a pair of touchdowns. His lone mistake came at the wrong time in the fourth quarter. With 6:32 left in the game, he threw up a deep ball looking for Elijah Moore and was picked off by Rams safety John Johnson III.

Johnson returned the interception 42 yards and it was all downhill from there for the Browns. Cleveland was down just 20-19 at the time of the interception, but Los Angeles scored 16 unanswered to close out the game.

The interception was bad, but Flacco provided the Browns with a spark at quarterback that they’ve rarely had this season. Despite that, head coach Kevin Stefanski declined to back Flacco as the starter going forward.

“I’m not going to get into all that,” Stefanski said after the loss. “I thought he saw it well and made good decisions. Did what we expected him to do.”

Flacco doesn’t know what his future holds in Cleveland but said he wants to be in the mix.

“I think anytime you get a little taste of playing football, you want to keep that going for as long as possible,” Flacco said.

The alternative would be rookie Dorian Thompson-Robinson, who missed the game due to a concussion. Thompson-Robinson was in concussion protocol this week but did not clear it in time to play. His status is still up in the air but is expected to be cleared in time for Cleveland’s Week 14 game against the Jacksonville Jaguars.

Thompson-Robinson provides some additional mobility but has made rookie mistakes and does not have the same command of the offense that Flacco does.

Joe Flacco Takes Blame for Costly Interception

Getty ImagesFormer Browns safety John Johnson III picked off Joe Flacco on December 3 to help the Rams win.

Flacco was quick to take the blame for the interception, which swung the momentum of the game.

“Just upset at myself. I know I can play the game. My thought process is just disappointed in myself,” Flacco said. “I think right now it’s impossible to sit there and reflect on positives.”

While costly, there were positives to take away from the matchup. Nine different players caught passes from Flacco. Elijah Moore — who played previously with Flacco on the New York Jets — had his best game of the season, collecting four catches for 83 yards.

What was more impressive was that Flacco played more than half the game without the services of wide receiver Amari Cooper, who exited in the first half with a concussion.

Cooper has far and away been the Browns’ most productive wide receiver. He leads the Browns in receptions (49) and yards (799). He’s also the only receiver on the roster averaging more than 10 yards per catch.

Myles Garrett Comments on Joe Flacco’s Performance

Flacco was signed by the Browns on November 20 and had limited time to learn the offense. Browns defensive star Myles Garrett commended Flacco for his performance against the Rams.

“He did well and he ran the offense pretty well for his first time out,” Garrett said. “There’s always room for improvement for all of us. But we just have to make plays down the stretch.”

The Browns’ defense has been able to bail the team out in some tough spots this season but is dealing with some injuries of their own. Star cornerback Denzel Ward has missed the last two games with a shoulder injury and veteran safety Rodney McLeod is out for the year with a bicep injury.

Cleveland allowed the Rams to rack up 399 yards of total offense. They’ll face another tough test next week against the Jaguars, who are averaging 23.1 points per game.