Joe Flacco has won the Comeback Player of the Year award, the first player in Cleveland Browns franchise history to win the award. Flacco, who wasn't on an NFL roster until late November, completed 60.3% of his passes for 1,616 yards with 13 touchdowns to eight interceptions in five games (90.2 passer rating) -- averaging 323.8 passing yards per game.
Flacco is the oldest player to win the Comeback Player of the Year award since Jim Martin in 1963, as both players were 39 years old at the time they won the award. The fifth straight quarterback to win the award, Flacco led the NFL in pass attempts (204), passing yards (1,316), passing touchdowns (13) and interceptions (eight) from Week 13 through 17 -- four of which were starts.
The Browns were 4-1 in Flacco's starts, as he was the fifth different quarterback to start a game for them this season. Flacco's teams went 1-8 in his starts over the previous three seasons, yet he had more touchdowns (13 to 7), a higher yards per attempt (7.9 to 6.5), and a higher passer rating (90.2 to 84.3) than Deshaun Watson -- who received $230 million guaranteed by the team just two seasons ago.
The Browns were the first playoff team since 1970 without their Week 1 starting quarterback, running back, left tackle and right tackle. Cleveland went 5-0 in games decided by three points or fewer. The only team with a better record in NFL history was the 2003 Carolina Panthers (who reached the Super Bowl), as that team went 7-0 in such games.
Flacco played a huge role in getting the Browns to the playoffs, as Cleveland was 7-5 after he made his first start. He led the Browns to four consecutive wins as Cleveland earned the No. 5 seed in the AFC playoffs -- in a division where every team finished with an over .500 record (the first division to accomplish that since the 1935 NFL West).
Whether Flacco returns in 2024 is up in the air, but he proved he can still be an effective quarterback at 39.
