The Cleveland Browns sit at 11-5 this season and are looking ahead to the NFL playoffs. They will finish the regular season against the Cincinnati Bengals, who have nothing to play for as they have been eliminated from playoff contention.
Being locked into the No. 5 seed in the AFC, the Browns will face the winner of the AFC South in the first round of the postseason. That could be the Jacksonville Jaguars, who would clinch the division with a win over the Tennessee Titans. If the Jaguars lose, the Colts-Texans winner would win the division.
The Browns have nothing to gain or lose in their final matchup of the season, so they will rest several key players in preparation for the playoffs.
Joe Flacco Takes Week 18 Off
Flacco is playing this season due to the Browns losing $230 million franchise quarterback Deshaun Watson to a season-ending shoulder injury in November and rookie QB Dorian Thompson-Robinson going down with a hip injury late in December.
Flacco led the Baltimore Ravens to a Super Bowl title after the 2012 season and has thrown for 1,616 yards in five starts since he was signed to Cleveland on Nov. 20. He has led the Browns to the playoffs for just the third time since 1999.
“We’ve earned this opportunity,” Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski said of resting players. “We’re going to utilize it.”
Cleveland will face Cincinnati using its fifth quarterback as Jeff Driskel, who was signed off Arizona’s practice squad last week, is slated to start.
Driskel, 30, will have only three full practices to prepare but can lean on familiarity with coordinator Alex Van Pelt. The Cardinals run the same system as the Browns under coordinator Drew Petzing, who was with Stefanski for years before leaving in the offseason. Van Pelt was also the Bengals quarterbacks coach during the 2018 season.
“As much as one offense to another, there’s probably not a much smoother transition, terminology-wise,” Driskel said. “Obviously somebody else called it, new guys around you. The bigger thing has been getting to know my teammates more than getting to know the system, which I think is a good thing.”
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Given his record against them, Flacco didn’t seem all that upset about not facing the Bengals — especially on the road. Flacco is 9-12 in his career against the Bengals.
“Yeah, I hate going to Cincinnati,” he said. “They’ve always played us tough.”
Through his five games this season, Flacco has completed 60.3% of his passing attempts for 1,616 yards, 13 touchdowns, and eight interceptions.
Browns defensive end Myles Garrett will likely join Flacco on the sideline, missing a chance to pad his stats or boost his Defensive Player of the Year résumé.
“I don’t know that Myles needs to do anything more on a football field to convince anyone how important he’s been to our football team,” Stefanski said. “Said it before, I’ll say it again, he’s the best player on the best defense in the National Football League. That counts for something.”
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