As I sat down to write this column, an associate of mine, thinking I’m some sort of expert on picking NFL games, approached me to ask for advice in his knockout pool this week.
He was, at that moment, fixated on taking the Vikings, who are playing at home against the Colts on Sunday night.
My first thought was that it’s probably not good business to bet against Joe Flacco, who’s now quarterbacking the Colts until further notice, since second-year supposed franchise quarterback Anthony Richardson’s now infamous “tap-out” from last week’s game.
Betting against Flacco isn’t recommended.
He’s a 39-year-old former Super Bowl champion in his 17th NFL season, still with skills, playing with his fifth team and essentially playing with house money.
Flacco is still playing because he loves to play, and, as an absolute marvel for his age, he’s playing because he still can. There’s no pressure for Flacco, and it’s a cool thing to watch him operate in such circumstances.
When the Jets signed him as a veteran backup after his 11 sterling seasons in Baltimore and one in Denver, I always had the feeling that would be his last stop.
Flacco seemed to be soaking it all in, and enjoying being needed, thanks to the inept quarterbacking by Zach Wilson in front of him that precipitated him coming off the bench to help.
When he and the Jets parted ways after the 2021 season, I figured that was it for Flacco. Then came a season in Cleveland in 2023, when he was summoned off the couch to help the injury-depleted Browns, going 4-1 as their starter and helping get them to the playoffs.
And here we are now, Flacco in Indianapolis, charged with trying to save a 4-4 Colts season that still has potential for a playoff berth.
Once the entrenched starter in Baltimore for all those years, this has become Flacco’s calling card: Hired gun, mentor, placeholder — whatever you want to call him, but don’t underestimate him.
This is the second consecutive season Flacco has taken over a struggling team in flux at quarterback in an effort to provide stability.
He resuscitated the Browns in 2023. Now he tries to do the same for the Colts with the 22-year-old Richardson struggling.
Last week’s 23-20 loss to Houston was the final straw. Richardson completed just 10 of 32 passes, threw an interception, was sacked five times and then asked out of the game on a third-and-goal play in the third quarter because he was “fatigued.” Colts head coach Shane Steichen had seen enough.
“I feel like Joe gives us the best chance to win,” Steichen said. “I’m just looking at where we’re at with the team. We’re at .500. It’s my obligation to 53 players in the locker room to win football games.”
Indeed, the Colts are just 1 ¹/₂ games behind the 6-3 Texans entering Sunday’s game and are well in the mix for a playoff berth.
It was a smart move on the part of Steichen, so he wouldn’t lose his locker room. I haven’t met Richardson, but from afar he seems like a young player who needs to mature and develop — particularly given how little experience he had even in college.
Steichen — insisting the team isn’t “giving up” on Richardson, the fourth-overall pick in the 2023 draft — said committing to Flacco “just gives everybody clarity in the building.”
Richardson has a league-low completion percentage of 44.4 and, with seven INTs, has the second-highest INT rate in the league and the worst quarterback rating among qualified quarterbacks, at 57.2.
Flacco is 71 of 108 passing (65.7 percent) for 716 yards with seven touchdowns and one INT. Flacco’s presence provides immediate credibility for the rest of the team.
“Last year’s situation is always going to be a little bit unique,” Flacco told reporters this week of coming off the couch to sign with the Browns. “This year, at least, I’ve been a part of this football team since the spring. I’ve been able to go out there and practice and be a part of it.
“It is a lot easier to prepare when you know you’re the guy. … Even though you try to keep everything the same when you’re coming off the bench, just mindset-wise, there’s something that changes just a little bit.
“Ultimately, when I’m preparing to start football games, that is where I feel most comfortable, even though I haven’t consistently done that for the last five years. This is where I feel at home.”
Let’s see where it takes this Colts team that’s still in the thick of a playoff chase.
