Joe Flacco understood that the question regarding mentorship was coming during the recent OTA session, and he responded with an enthusiasm that would remind many of baseball legend Barry Bonds in ‘01. The query surrounded his willingness to guide the Cleveland Browns’ younger quarterbacks, a topic he has addressed repeatedly throughout his 18-year NFL career.

Flacco is currently vying for the starting position against Kenny Pickett and rookies Dillon Gabriel and Shedeur Sanders. His response was detailed and echoed sentiments of past quarterbacks such as Brett Favre and Aaron Rodgers, explaining the complexities of defining roles as a veteran.

“It’s a good question to bait somebody into answering… no matter how they answer it, it kind of makes the guy that’s answering it look bad,” Flacco expressed. “If I say, ‘I don’t want to be a mentor,’ I look bad. If I say, ‘I do want to be a mentor,’ then I look like an idiot that doesn’t care about being good and playing football. So it’s one of those questions that no matter what I say, you guys can write what you want to write about it.

He clarified that while he has a wealth of experience to offer, he doesn’t feel it’s his responsibility to ensure that young players absorb his lessons.

Flacco continued, “Once again, it’s not really about that, it’s just not the main focus. I see myself as a guy that can play in this league. So if your main focus was just like, ‘Hey bud, I’m gonna get you ready,’ you’re just not taking care of business.”

Ultimately, although he is open to assisting his teammates, he is not comfortable with the traditional label of mentor often assigned to older quarterbacks.