Bengals Execute ‘Stunner’ QB Trade 9 Days Before Facing Steelers: Report

Veteran quarterback Joe Flacco never faced the Pittsburgh Steelers as a member of the Cleveland Browns. But Flacco will have an opportunity to perform against the Steelers with the Cincinnati Bengals.

ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported Tuesday the Bengals acquired Flacco from the Browns in a draft pick exchange. Multiple other NFL insiders also reported the trade Tuesday afternoon.

The Browns will receive a 2026 fifth-round pick. In exchange, the Bengals will get Flacco and a 2026 sixth-rounder.

Cincinnati is adding Flacco to its roster, presumably to start immediately, nine days prior to facing the Steelers on 

NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport reported the Bengals were shopping around the league for a quarterback since losing Sunday. Yet, Rapoport still referred to Cincinnati acquiring Flacco as “a stunner.”

Flacco will likely replace Jake Browning behind center in Cincinnati. Browning has posted an 0-3 record since starting for Joe Burrow, who suffered a toe injury during Week 2.

Browning went 4-3 in seven starts during the 2023 campaign. But this season, he has gone winless. During his starts, the Bengals have averaged 12.3 points and 217.3 yards per contest.

Flacco went 1-3 with a 58.1% completion percentage and 5.1 yards per pass average in four starts with the Browns this season. Flacco also had two touchdowns and six interceptions.

Steelers Likely to Face Joe Flacco With Bengals in Week 7

The Steelers have an interesting next 10 days with two divisional showdowns. Fascinatingly, those two teams, the Browns and Bengals, just executed a rare inter-division trade.

With Flacco heading to Cincinnati, he will likely make his 23rd appearance against the Steelers on October 16. Flacco owns an 11-11 record in his previous 22 encounters with Pittsburgh.

Most recently, the veteran quarterback carved up Pittsburgh’s secondary while he was a member of the Indianapolis Colts last year. Flacco came off the bench to go 16 of 26 for 168 yards with two touchdowns. Indianapolis won that Week 4 matchup 27-24 last season.

Before Week 4 this year, Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin explained that he actually didn’t want Flacco, who was Anthony Richardson’s backup for the Pittsburgh-Indianapolis matchup in 2024, to play.

I don’t necessarily view it as a negative thing for the Minnesota Vikings, at least in the short term, that Carson is playing for them. We were in a similar situation a year ago — we were playing in Indianapolis,” Tomlin told reporters on September 24, via Bleacher Report’s Adam Wells. “Man, and I commented to the guys, ‘Keep [Anthony] Richardson upright. Don’t put [Joe] Flacco in the game.’ And you know, Flacco ended up in the game.”

Flacco coming off the bench against the Steelers was a possibility again in Week 6. Before Tuesday’s trade, Flacco was set to be Cleveland’s backup to Dillon Gabriel.

But instead, the Steelers will have to deal with Flacco four days later. In Week 6, fellow rookie Shedeur Sanders will be Gabriel’s backup for the Browns.

Lions Urged to Consider Reunion With Former Starting Defensive Back

Fortunately, the Detroit Lions received a great update on injured cornerback Terrion Arnold on Tuesday. ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported a second opinion indicated Arnold’s shoulder injury is not season-ending. Furthermore, Arnold could only need about a month to recover.

That prognosis means the Lions might be less inclined to add another cornerback. However, if Arnold lands on injured reserve, a cornerback addition for Detroit still makes sense. In addition to Arnold, Lions cornerbacks Ennis Rakestraw, D.J. Reed and Khalil Dorsey also have injured.

SI on Lions‘ Emmett Matasovky named seven external cornerback options for the Lions to consider. One of the more intriguing possibilities Matasovky proposed was former Detroit defensive back Jerry Jacobs.

“Jacobs is another veteran with experience in Detroit, playing during the first three years of the Brad Holmes and Dan Campbell era,” wrote Matasovky.

He started 12 games for the Lions during their NFC Championship appearance year in 2023, picking off three passes. However, that year, Jacobs has not appeared in a regular season game since.

“He spent all of 2024 out of football, too. However, he has stayed in shape for football, as the Cowboys and Colts have each worked him out since June.

His 12 starts in 2023 were a career high for Jacobs. However, he lost his starting role after Week 14 of that season. Jacobs then barely played in the final four games and didn’t dress for any of the team’s playoff matchups.

Since then, Jacobs has spent time with the Los Angeles Rams. But he hasn’t appeared in another NFL game since 2023. The Dallas Cowboys and Indianapolis Colts didn’t sign him to contracts following his workouts with those teams.

Why the Lions Could Sign CB Jerry Jacobs

Based on Schefter’s report, Arnold could return by Halloween. That makes the urgency for the Lions to add a cornerback much lower than originally expected to begin this week.

So, if the team adds a defensive back, it would make sense that he has experience but is also a veteran that could play a reserve role when Arnold returns.

As long as he is still in football shape, Jacobs fits that mold. He has started 29 NFL games, all of which came with the Lions. Jacobs is familiar with Detroit’s defensive system and could probably contribute immediately (if in shape).

In 15 games during 2023, he posted 55 combined tackles, including two tackles for loss. Jacobs also had eight pass defenses and three interceptions.

In addition to Jacobs, Matasovsky named former Lions defensive back C.J. Gardner-Johnson a potential external cornerback option for Detroit. But on Tuesday, the Baltimore Ravens signed Gardner-Johnson.

Cornerbacks DiCaprio Bootle, Cameron Dantzler, Melvin Smith Jr., Fabian Moreau and Tre Hawkins were the other external candidates that made Matasovsky’s list.

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