Cleveland Browns: Joe Flacco carves up the Rams on first drive

Joe Flacco made it look easy. In his debut with the Cleveland Browns, the 38-year-old quarterback surgically moved his offense down the field and put them on top thanks to a 24-yard touchdown pass to Jerome Ford. In all, he was 4-of-5 for 65 yards with the touchdown.

The drive started with Flacco taking an easy layup to Amari Cooper for six yards. He then handed it off twice, including giving the ball to Kareem Hunt on third-and-2. Then, a four-yard loss on the next play from Ford put them behind the sticks.

Flacco was unbothered by this as the 15-year veteran dropped back on third-and-14 and fired an absolute dart to Cooper. This one went for 22 yards and the throw could only be described as one thing — "poetry in motion."

This is the fourth starter the Browns have had under center this season. Deshaun Watson is on the IR with a shoulder injury and P.J. Walker and Dorian Thompson-Robinson have taken turns. However, DTR is out with a concussion and Flacco is believed to be a better option than Walker, which is hard to argue after his first drive.

Cleveland (7-4) is looking to bounce back from a loss last week to the Denver Broncos. They're facing the Rams (5-6) who are fresh off a win over the Arizona Cardinals. Led by Matthew Stafford, the Rams are trying to get back on track after a losing season in 2022 — which followed a Super Bowl win in 2021.

The Browns are in sixth place in the AFC right now and a win in Week 13 will only stregthen their chances at getting back into the postseason. If that happens, it will be the second time they made it under Kevin Stefanski, who is in his fourth year as the head coach.

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