It’s official: Joe Flacco will start for the Bengals on Sunday when they take on the Packers.
Head coach Zac Taylor told reporters that would be the case to begin his Wednesday press conference.
“I played it a lot, I watched it a lot. Brings great experience, great leadership” Taylor said of Flacco. “His style also fits our style of play, so I’m excited to bring him out.
“We’re going to start him this week. So he’s going to be doing all the reps, getting ready to go. He’s already spent a lot of time meeting with us, getting up to speed. So, feel really good about where he’s at.”
Taylor had only met Flacco briefly before the club traded him. But he is still very comfortable playing QB because of his vast experience. Additionally, Taylor coached Flacco on several occasions, including in Week 1 of this season.
“So, very comfortable with his style, the concepts that he’s good at, the things that suit us,” Taylor said. “A lot of terminology, there’s been a lot of handoffs – more than I expected. So I feel like we can get him up to speed quickly.
“He’s a great passer,” Taylor added. “And, again, we have to expand all areas of our offense to be better, to be efficient, to run the football, to protect – all that kind of stuff. But the No. 1 trait you’re looking for is a guy who can run your system and throw the football. And Joe has always been a tremendous passer in this league, and I’ve seen it. So, now we have some terrific weapons that he can play with. TO DO. “
Taylor said Bengals director of player personnel (and de facto general manager) Duke Tobin spoke to him about the deal’s potential on Tuesday.
“Obviously he asked my opinion on Joe. And I was excited that if we can make it happen, I’m on board, I’d be excited about that,” Taylor said. “And then he just came and said we did it.”
The Bengals had someone drive Flacco and his wife to Cincinnati from Cleveland, with his new team starting to catch up with him on the new draft on the drive from northern to southern Ohio.
But now that Flacco is with the Bengals, Taylor noted that Flacco can bring a sense of confidence to the club until Burrow can return later in 2025.
“I think everyone saw him out there, doing that — winning a Super Bowl, winning a lot of games and having success in a lot of different places,” Taylor said. “So, I can’t speak for others. But when you bring a guy in here with that experience, those skins on the wall, I think it’s important and can mean something to the guys. But they should speak for themselves on that.
“(Our) number one goal is to win every game we can possibly win and go to the playoffs and go deep into the playoffs. That’s 100 percent our goal, regardless of who our quarterback is. That’s what we’re trying to do.”
