Netflix’s ‘Quarterback’ has now (unintentionally) featured a Cincinnati Bengals quarterback twice. The first was Joe Burrow, and now it’s Joe Flacco.
The Cleveland Browns and Bengals making a trade to send Flacco south was shocking for a number of reasons. Cincinnati is not known for making those direction-changing moves in the middle of a season, slipping away. Probably more surprising was Cleveland actually sending Flacco — their Week 1 starter — to a quarterback-needy divisional rival.
The shock
is palpable in this scene, but it also goes to show just how quickly things can move.
One of the funniest things is Flacco’s children in disbelief of him being traded to Cincinnati. Several times, I asked them to confirm it directly from their own parents. Flacco himself even believed he could be getting cut, which was probably a more likely thing than being traded as well.
Flacco packing up his apartment in his suitcase, which still had a Browns logo on it, and loading it up to be driven south to go from being benched to game-planning in one of the most talented offenses in the NFL is just such a whiplash. And you can almost tell they barely even have time to react to it.
Having to roll with the punches is simply part of life as a player in the NFL.
Flacco’s tenure in Cincinnati has made him incredibly likable among the fanbase, and it is hard to believe, but this series may make him even more likable.
