BEREA, Ohio (AP) — After making strides over the last week and a half, the Browns are still waiting to see how rookie quarterback Dorian Thompson-Robinson progresses through concussion protocol. While they do so, and a decision on who will start—Thompson-Robinson or veteran Joe Flacco—the latter is preparing in case he is called upon for the second week in a row.
Flacco’s first game in orange and brown went well. He threw for 254 yards, scored on the first drive and again later in the game, and made sound decisions with the exception of an untimely interception late in the game against the Los Angeles Rams. All of this despite not having played for nearly a year.
“He can certainly stretch the field.” So impressive for a guy to come off the bench, without an offseason or anything, and be productive. “I’m so proud of him,” offensive coordinator Alex Van Pelt said.
While a decision on who will start has yet to be made, Thompson-Robinson was once again limited at practice on Thursday, with Flacco getting the majority of the work. With only one more day of practice before Sunday’s game against the Jacksonville Jaguars, the situation is pointing to Flacco getting his second straight start, barring Thompson-Robinson’s return from concussion protocol.
For Flacco, the opportunity to step in and try to get some much-needed wins with the Browns, who are fighting for playoff position (which makes the AFC matchup with the Jaguars even more important), is exciting.
“It’s definitely energizing. It’s thrilling. “This is exactly what you want,” Flacco stated. “You want to think about doing your job and everybody else doing their job side-by-side and letting everything else take care of itself.”
His performance against the Rams impressed both his teammates and coaches. Flacco, a 16-year veteran and former Super Bowl MVP, clearly knows his way around a football field. His experience has made learning a new offense second nature to him. But the Browns saw Flacco prepared in every aspect of his game.
“I think he’s seen it all, he’s had a lot of experience, and I think he’s picked up on the offense very quickly,” left guard Joel Bitonio said. “He knows what he has to do, and there was never any doubt in the huddle.” He was confident, knew the play calls in and out, and knew our cadences very well. So a lot of the things you do when you’re getting used to a new quarterback, he already had down, so it’s been a smooth transition.”
If this trend continues into Friday and Saturday, and Thompson-Robinson remains in concussion protocol, Flacco will make his orange and brown debut in Cleveland—a city he’s played in front of numerous times throughout his career, most notably during his 11 seasons with the Baltimore Ravens.
Playing at Cleveland Browns Stadium has always felt natural to Flacco. It would just be a little more welcoming with him on the other side of things come game day this time.
“It’s a grass field outside, and you can feel the city of Cleveland.” You usually have some kind of weather so you know where you are…certainly, that’s how you prefer it. “You smell the grass, and it just feels like football,” said Flacco. “That’s always been the stadiums that have appealed to me, when you can go out there and smell the grass and feel like it’s football weather.” And it’s that time of year again. We’ll be in Cleveland in December, and it should be a lot of fun.”
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