Cincinnati BengalsJoe Flacco is a QB for the Cincinnati Bengals on a deal paying $6M a year through 2026, a $3.3M cap hit in 2026 (updated November 7, 2026).
Model Score by season
Down 0.3 from last season.
How good he is at what he is supposed to be doing, out of 100. Not a projection of what he will do next, and not a read on his contract. Median is about 70, and a 95 is rare. How it is built →
STM Take
A stationary pocket passer who only works with elite protection and receivers.
The case for
- Still has functional arm talent at 41; the Wk 7-9 Cincinnati stretch (25.98, 24.32, 30.7 PPR) and his 2023 Cleveland Comeback Player of the Year campaign prove starter-grade weeks remain available in the right context.
- Repeated mid-tier rankings (#18-20) across CIN, IND, and CLE in 2023-2025 confirm a stable veteran ceiling. The Super Bowl XLVII pedigree still translates to clean-pocket downfield reps when the protection holds.
The worry
- Five of his last seven 2025 games scored under 10 PPR, including back-to-back-to-back outings under 2 PPR. The arm cannot carry a full-season workload anymore.
- Mobility was never a feature and at 41 he is purely a stationary pocket passer. Career sack rate of 6.0% gets worse behind a compromised line, which Cincinnati cannot guarantee.
What to watch: Whether Cincinnati retains him as Burrow's backup for 2026; if Burrow misses time again, the late-2025 collapse below 10 PPR is the actual risk profile.
Full take and bio
The early Cincinnati stretch produced three straight games of 24+ PPR (Wk 7-9 hit 25.98, 24.32, 30.7), then his production cratered to under 10 PPR in five of the final seven weeks. His 2025 split (#18 Cincinnati, #48 Cleveland) tells you the floor depends entirely on supporting cast: a clean pocket with Ja'Marr Chase and Tee Higgins outside, and the vertical arm still plays. Without that, he is below replacement.
Flacco came out of Delaware (after transferring from Pitt) as Baltimore's 1st-round pick (18th overall) in 2008. He won Super Bowl XLVII MVP after the 2012 season on the strength of an 11-touchdown, zero-interception postseason run, which produced a 117.2 playoff passer rating that stood as the modern benchmark for years. After Baltimore released him in 2019 he became a journeyman starter and emergency bridge: Denver, Jets, Browns, Colts, back to Cleveland (Comeback Player of the Year in 2023), and Cincinnati. He still plays a vertical, gunslinger brand at 41.
Comps
The players whose size, testing and production looked most like his at the same point in their careers. The percent is how close.
Plays like: Jeff George, Warren Moon, Brian Hoyer. Built like: Feleipe Franks, Drew Lock, Andrew Walter.
Joe Flacco Injury StatusNot listed
Joe Flacco is not on the injury report as of Nov 6. Source: the official NFL injury report, refreshed daily.
This season
0 fantasy points a game. Every game on the Game Log, every season on Career. Advanced numbers are EPA and Next Gen Stats.
Contract2026 cap
Every year of the deal, the dead money and what a cut or trade saves on the Contract tab.
Draft & College
Out of Pittsburgh.
Recruited
Class of 2003 · Quarterback · High school: Audubon, NJ
His full list of offers is not on our record yet; offers for the 2003 class are still being added.