Has Joe Flacco resurrected his career in Cleveland? NFL Week 15 fact or fiction

QB Joe Flacco set for second start as Browns meet Jaguars with AFC playoff ramifications | AP News

CLEVELAND, Ohio — The Browns came back from a 10-point fourth-quarter deficit to defeat the Bears on Sunday, 20-17. But there was more going on around the NFL than the matchup in Cleveland.

Every week, we’ll go through the biggest storylines and examine potential narratives from around the NFL.

To help us examine these storylines and narratives, we’re following in the footsteps of the 1990s show, “Beyond Belief: Fact or Fiction,” which you may know better from the memes of host Jonathan Frakes.

Just like Frakes, we will decide every week whether several of the top storylines from around the league are fact or fiction. Here are this week’s six biggest storylines.

1. The Browns have resurrected Joe Flacco’s career

Verdict: Fact.

Through three quarters of Sunday’s game vs. the Bears, the magic of Joe Flacco appeared to have run dry. He threw three interceptions, one of which was returned for a touchdown, and one helped set up another TD.

But in the fourth quarter, Flacco came alive, leading the Browns on three scoring drives. His 51-yard TD pass in a tight window to Amari Cooper tied the game at 17, and then he led a drive to set up Dustin Hopkins for the eventual game-winning field goal from 33 yards out.

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Flacco threw for 374 yards, 212 of which came in the fourth quarter alone.

The Browns couldn’t have asked for more from their fourth different starting quarterback than what Flacco has given them. At 38, Flacco, who wasn’t even on a team until the Browns signed him to the practice squad on Nov. 20, may be getting one last kick in his career.

Lamar Jackson’s emergence in Baltimore pushed Flacco off the roster, and he spent a year with the Broncos and three with the Jets. It would have been easy to think Flacco’s career to be over after he wasn’t on a roster for most of this season.

But Flacco didn’t agree with those thoughts. Instead, he’s rediscovered what made him special in Baltimore and made him a Super Bowl MVP.

There are still some limitations to his game. He’s a true pocket passer in a game that is best suited to dual-threat QBs. He’s also prone to interceptions, including the one to Tyrique Stevenson at the goal line on a throw intended for David Njoku.

But in the last two weeks, Flacco has been at his best in the moments where the Browns have needed it. Whatever happens the rest of the way, Flacco’s play in these three starts with the Browns have earned him one last shot in the NFL in 2024.

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