Shout out to Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Flacco. At 40 years young, this man gutted through injuries, bad defensive efforts, and digesting a whole new playbook to make this Bengals season far more entertaining than it had any right to be.
The harsh reality for Flacco is that Joe Burrow will come back soon, and as long as he's doing Joe Brrr things, it won't be long before Flacco is pretty much forgotten.
Or is that an inaccurate statement? Maybe Flacco's time in Cincinnati won't be celebrated as much as it should be due to the lack of winning. Don't get it twisted, though — when semi-healthy, Flacco played winning football. The Bengals just failed him. In the process, it's very possible Flacco played his way to another bridge starting job in 2026.
A few teams pop out as ideal landing spots for Flacco. For a man who's on his seventh different NFL team, it's hard to believe he hasn't played for any of these suitors before.
Vikings would be in playoff mix with Bengals-edition Joe Flacco
Minnesota Vikings head coach Kevin O'Connell has famously said something like organizations fail young quarterbacks more than young quarterbacks fail organizations.
Welp. The Vikings selected J.J. McCarthy 10th overall in the 2024 NFL Draft. He missed his whole rookie season with a torn meniscus. Despite Minnesota's exceptional organizational infrastructure, through six NFL starts, McCarthy doesn't look the part of a franchise QB.
J.J. McCarthy on 3rd down this season among 34 QBs who quality for passer rating...
— Rich Hribar (@LordReebs) November 24, 2025
38.6% completion rate (last)
25% 1D/TD rate (last)
9.1% INT rate (last)
17.0% sack rate (31st)
We could see history repeat itself next season to some degree. Flacco entered the Colts' lineup last season when Anthony Richardson got benched. That reset helped Richardson to some degree, and he pushed Daniel Jones in a training camp QB competition this year before DJ took the reins and played at an MVP-caliber level for the first half of the season.
Jones benefited from his brief stint with O'Connell. The amount of ball knowledge between KOC and Flacco, plus the Vikings' premier weapons in Justin Jefferson, Jordan Addison, and T.J. Hockenson, make Minnesota a highly appealing destination for Joe Cool.
The NFC North is brutal for the Vikings at the minute. They need a steady vet under center like Flacco to steer the ship next year while they retool McCarthy's mechanics and morale.
Falcons can save themselves from QB purgatory by signing Joe Flacco
Perhaps no team has botched their quarterback situation quite like the Atlanta Falcons. They picked Michael Penix Jr. eighth overall last year about, what, a month after shelling out a $180 million free-agent deal to Kirk Cousins, with $90 million fully guaranteed?
Rogue GM Terry Fontenot then sacrificed a 2026 first-rounder to trade up for James Pearce Jr. in the 2025 draft. He was my most desired pass rusher for the Bengals to take. They went with Shemar Stewart instead. Big surprise — that's not looking like a great decision! Congrats again, Duke Tobin, on lighting another draft pick on fire!
Anyway, the point is Atlanta doesn't have its Day 1 pick. The Super Bowl-contending Los Angeles Rams do. Cousins is a weaker-armed, less nimble version of Flacco and turns 38 in August. Penix is staring down reconstructive ACL surgery.
To compensate for all these personnel blunders, the Falcons can ink Flacco to a modest contract, and have Captain Kirk compete with him. That'd an old but very experienced QB room. The other option is to cut Cousins, who'd save the team $22.5 million in 2026 cap space even before June 1.
A decent scenario for Atlanta is to sign Flacco, cut Cousins, and roll with Easton Stick as QB2, too. Use the extra money to bolster the roster elsewhere.
Joe Flacco could cook as Panthers QB in weak NFC South
Sticking in the Falcons' division, I'm giving myself free rein to change my mind on this. The Carolina Panthers do have ex-Bengal Andy Dalton as Bryce Young's backup, but Flacco has flashed far more high-end ability in recent years than the Red Rifle has.
Speaking of flashing high-end ability, dear lord, where did Bryce Young's 448-yard passing performance against none other than the Falcons come from!?
Young is a former No. 1 overall pick who has the Panthers tied atop the NFC South at 6-5. However, whenever Carolina has played a legit opponent in 2025, they've gotten demolished. The gutsy field general plays with great anticipation, but his footwork and overall accuracy are all over the place, and Young has such a slight frame that I can't imagine him staying healthy for the long haul.
I reserve the right to change my mind about this based on whether Young continues to ball out against the 49ers on Monday Night Football. As things stand right now, I believe San Francisco is going to destroy Young and the Panthers in prime time.
Not to box score scout someone's career stats, but Young's completion rate of 60.9% and sub-80 passer rating more or less match the eye test when you watch him play. I'm viewing Young's eruption versus Atlanta as a one-off until proven otherwise.
Considering the other pieces the Panthers have in place and a savvy head coach/play-caller in Dave Canales, I could see Flacco lighting it up in Carolina with an ascending skill group led by Tetairoa McMillan.
How's this for a full-circle end to the article?
New on @AthlonSports: Last season, the @Panthers benched Bryce Young for his own good -- so he could calm down and see the game differently. It worked.
— Doug Farrar ✍ (@NFL_DougFarrar) November 24, 2025
It's time for the @Vikings to see if a benching works for J.J. McCarthy. He's lost out there. https://t.co/bcC7jwtM7O