Is Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Flacco on the trading block?
Not so fast.
Rumors began to swirl on social media that the New York Giants could be interested in trading for Flacco due to the recent injury to starting quarterback Jaxson Dart. Flacco has ties with Giants head coach John Harbaugh from their time together in Baltimore, where they won the Super Bowl in 2013.
The chatter on this subject has been loud enough that Flacco said his friends have made jokes to him about seeing him in New York soon. Flacco quickly put a stop to the conversation.
“It's obviously not real and not true,” Flacco told The Enquirer.” “But it was good enough to get people like certain friends of mine to get them to text me, ‘hey, I'll see you in New York.’ I was like,
‘no, guys, you won’t, that's not true.’”
Dart injured his knee Sept. 21 and will miss the rest of the regular season, Harbaugh told reporters. The Chicago Bears and Washington Commanders are also dealing with injuries to their starting quarterbacks.
It’s highly unlikely the Bengals would be interested in trading Flacco. Cincinnati gave Flacco a lucrative deal for a backup position because of how much they value him. Flacco's contract is $6 million for one season and can go up to $9 million with incentives.
For the Bengals to shell out that much money for a player who doesn’t even start, it shows how highly the organization thinks of him. The Bengals saw the importance of having a backup quarterback who can carry the offense and win games in 2025.
Joe Burrow injured his toe in the second week of the season last year, and former backup Jake Browning wasn’t capable of orchestrating the offense at a high level. The Bengals knew to salvage the season they needed better play at the quarterback spot, and that’s when the trade with the Cleveland Browns for Flacco happened.
The Bengals traded for Flacco on Oct. 7 last season. He went on to start six games for the team and gave the Bengals a chance to make the playoffs. The 41-year-old quarterback completed 251 of 416 passes for 2,479 yards and 15 touchdowns when Burrow was out.
Given Burrow’s injury history, the organization has made it a point to remain ready for a worst-case scenario. Cincinnati feels it has a roster good enough to contend for a Super Bowl this season, and it’s why keeping Flacco is necessary.
If Burrow were to suffer an injury and miss time, the franchise has full confidence in Flacco to lead the team.
So, although Flacco has heard the noise recently, he doesn’t let it impact him.
“I just get a kick out of it,” he said. "I haven’t really given it too much thought at this point.”
Flacco also understands the business aspect of the conversation. When he signed his contract to play for the Bengals, he relinquished control. The Bengals get to dictate when and where he plays for the remainder of the 2026 season, and there’s no reason to believe it will be anywhere other than in Cincinnati.
“In these cases, it’s not up to me,” Flacco said. “I’m on the Cincinnati Bengals and because of that, that’s my focus. Being here, doing the things that I need to do to get better each day while I’m here. Make sure I’m absorbing the game plan and all of those things. I get a little bit of a kick out of it, but it’s kind out of my hands. I’m a Cincinnati Bengal, and I’m doing everything I can to get ready for the Pittsburgh Steelers.”
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Joe Flacco sets record straight on if he expects to be traded to the Giants
