As the Cleveland Browns continue working to fill out their quarterback room, their search may leave them coming face-to-face with an old friend, Joe Flacco.
According to Browns insider Tony Grossi, of ESPN Cleveland, the team is reportedly more inclined to reunite with the Super Bowl champion than trade for Falcons backup Kirk Cousins.
“Flacco is more likely to be the quarterback than Cousins,” Grossi told host of “The Really Big Show” Tony Rizzo this week. “Affordability is primary there, besides the fact that they know him.”
The comments come after team owner Jimmy Haslam mentioned Flacco’s name at the annual NFL owner’s meetings earlier in the week. As Haslam put it, Flacco is “in the conversation” for the Browns to sign this offseason, but he wouldn’t make any promises.
Flacco being available to sign as a free agent does make him a much more attainable option than Cousins at this point. To acquire the latter will ultimately require Cleveland to swing a trade with the Falcons.
Atlanta will likely be looking for some form of draft compensation in return and they’d have to be willing to eat some of the guaranteed money in Cousin’s contract.
Another major hurdle comes in the form of Cousins needing to waive his no-trade clause to agree to a trade with any team. That’s something that could be heavily influenced by what the Browns decided to do in the NFL Draft later this month, hence why Cousins is waiting to make any decisions about his future until after that spectacle.
While they wait, the Browns may just find themselves coming around on a reunion with Flacco instead.