CLEVELAND, Ohio — Kevin Stefanski isn’t ready to make the switch from Joe Flacco to rookie Dillon Gabriel yet, and that’s the smart play.
The Browns have only played two games, and could’ve won the first one had kicker Andre Szmyt not missed the extra point and the 36-yard potential gamewinning field goal in the 17-16 loss to the Bengals.
Granted, Flacco threw two picks that game, but both went off the hands of his top two receivers, Jerry Jeudy and Cedric Tillman. He played well enough to win, throwing for 290 yards and a touchdown to Tillman.
In Baltimore, Flacco pressed when things went south, and forced a throw to David Njoku that he never should’ve made while under duress. Nate Wiggins swiped the deep ball and ran it back 61 yards to the Browns’ 5, where Joe Bitonio stopped him. But Lamar Jackson still cashed in with a 2-yard TD pass that made it 20-3 in the third.
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Flacco (25 of 45, 199 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT, 65.0 rating) followed that with a sack-fumble-TD that made it 34-10 with 8:18 left in the game — the second straight game the Browns finished minus-2 in the turnover battle.
With 4:43 left and the Browns trailing 41-10, Flacco was replaced by Gabriel for the Browns’ final series, on which he went 3-for-3 for 20 yards and threw and 8 yard TD pass to Dylan Sampson.
But Stefanski diagnosed the offensive woes as more of a systemic problem and not just a Flacco flaw.
“We didn’t play well enough on offense, and we didn’t coach well enough on offense, and it’s never going to be about one person,” Stefanski said. “Joe knows there’s plays that he can be better, and it obviously starts with protecting the ball in this game, and he understands that, and that’s our focus moving forward.”
He stressed that the hook wasn’t about transitioning to Gabriel for his quick release and processing.
“You understand how the game was and where we were in the game, but that’s really not our focus,” Stefanski said.
Flacco also had to overcome some unexpected adversity against his former team, with All-Pro right tackle Jack Conklin being ruled out beforehand with his elbow injury, and left tackle Dawand Jones rotating with Rams 2024 seventh-round pick KT Leveston because of heat-related concerns. That’s a tall order against the Ravens for a player who was just traded to the Browns on Aug. 26.
What’s more, Flacco, who didn’t have enough time in preseason to synch it up with his new skill players, didn’t get enough help from his receivers, who dropped four or five passes vs. the Ravens. Tillman, who had one of those drops, also stumbled to the ground a few times, including once on which Flacco took a 7-yard sack when he saw his man down. Overall, he was hit nine times — far too many for any quarterback, let alone a 40-year-old one.
Flacco also hasn’t had the support of a running game in his first two outings. Against the Bengals, the Browns rushed for only 46 yards and a 2.0 average, and against the Ravens, they ran for only 69 yards and a 3.8-yard average when Flacco was in the game. The other 45 yards came on the Gabriel drive.
In both games, Flacco attempted 45 passes, which he won’t have to do if they can get the overhauled running game off the ground. Rookie running back Quinshon Judkins rushed for 61 yards on 10 carries, but 31 of those came on that final drive.
It won’t get any easier for Judkins Sunday against the 2-0 Packers, who boast one of the most fearsome defenses in the NFL — one bolstered by the recent addition of rabid edge rusher Micah Parsons. The Packers are equally strong in rushing the passer and stopping the run, and have already vanquished two of the league’s best offenses.
In two games, they’ve allowed only 97 yards rushing on 41 attempts for a 2.7-yard average, and have allowed only one run longer than 10 yards. The Commanders couldn’t bust a called run longer than 5 yards.
With three games coming up against NFC North playoff teams in the Packers, Lions and Vikings, now is not the time to throw an inexperienced rookie to the wolves, especially one who’s had less time on task than Flacco in this new and struggling offense. The Lions and Vikings games are on the road — with the latter taking place in London on October 5 — and then the Browns fly back across the pond only to visit the Steelers when they return. That’s three straight road games and four out of five, including a trip to New England on Oct. 26.
It would be a tall task for a rookie to manage all of that crowd noise and other challenges of playing on the road in his first few games in the NFL.
“I think we have to play better for Joe before we make any of those decisions,” left tackle Joel Bitonio said after the game. “We have to give our of offense a chance to perform and make sure we’re good to go before we make any changes. And I don’t think if you pick our problems, I don’t think Joe’s high on the list.”
Besides, if the Browns pull the plug on Flacco too soon, what happens if Gabriel isn’t ready and needs to sit back down? Do they go back to Flacco? The Browns don’t believe that Shedeur Sanders is ready yet, so it’s doubtful he’d get the nod anytime soon. That leaves practice-squader Bailey Zappe and then eventually maybe Deshaun Watson (Achilles) in late October or November if they decide to activate him off reserve/Physically Unable to Perform.
Kenny Pickett, traded to the Raiders, would’ve been a good interim selection, but the Browns liked what they saw enough of Gabriel in the preseason to feel comfortable handing it over to him if Flacco faltered.
The truth is, Flacco is paying the price, in part, for an offense that hasn’t yet jelled. Tillman (2 of 7 targets, 22 yards, 1 TD) struggled in Baltimore with the drop and maintaining his footing, until he atoned for it with a nifty one-handed 18-yard TD catch on fourth and 3. Marlon Humphrey dropped a pick, and Tillman was there to catch it, just inside the end zone.
Flacco will have to work hard to develop his timing and chemistry with both Tillman and Jeudy, communicating frequently and repping it over and over until it feels comfortable. With the QB pie being sliced four ways during the offseason and preseason, Flacco has some catching up to do. On the bright side, he’s developing a nice rhythm, already with rookie tight end Harold Fannin Jr., who caught 5 of 5 targets vs. the Ravens for 48 yards, with a long gain of 20. Against the Bengals, he caught 7 of 9 targets for 63 yards, and his 12 receptions are tied for second most by a rookie tight end in the NFL in the first two weeks of a season.
“Obviously through camp, Joe’s done a good job and I believe in him, the coaches believe in him, so we’re going to keep believing in him,” Fannin said Monday. “We’re this close and Joe’s going to do a good job of whatever it may be, taking those shots and things like that. But it’s going to come. Just trusting the process, it’s definitely going to come.”
There will be plenty of time this season to evaluate the rookie quarterbacks so the Browns know what they have heading into the rich QB draft in April. For now, it’s still Flacco time, as it should be.