Who Should I Start? Joe Flacco or Deshaun Watson


Week 1 Projections

Fant.
Pts.
Rush.
Yds.
Rush
TD
Rec. Rec.
Yds.
Rec
TD
22.3 3.6 0.1 0.0 0.0 0.0

Joe Flacco News

Joe Flacco Could Return to Bengals as Backup

Sunday, March 8, 7:32 PM

Veteran free-agent quarterback Joe Flacco wants an opportunity to at least compete for a starting job somewhere in 2026. However, if he's forced to settle for backup work, Flacco would "strongly consider" returning to the Cincinnati Bengals to back up Joe Burrow, according to Tom Pelissero of the NFL Network. The 41-year-old made his first Pro Bowl team in 2025 after initially beginning the season with the Cleveland Browns as their starter. Cincy traded for Flacco after Burrow went down with a turf-toe injury early in the season, and Flacco proceeded to pull more magic out of his hat by throwing for 1,664 yards, 13 touchdowns, and four interceptions in nine games (six starts) for the Bengals. He became a waiver-wire pickup in fantasy leagues for QB-needy managers and had some decent performances along the way. There don't appear to be any glaring options for Flacco to be handed another starting job, so the likelihood of him returning to Cincy could be pretty high.


Week 1 Projections

Fant.
Pts.
Rush.
Yds.
Rush
TD
Rec. Rec.
Yds.
Rec
TD
0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0

Deshaun Watson News

Browns Restructure Deshaun Watson's Contract

Friday, March 6, 6:49 AM

The Cleveland Browns restructured quarterback Deshaun Watson's contract on Friday to ease his $80.716 million salary cap charge in 2026, according to Mary Kay Cabot of The Cleveland Plain Dealer. The Browns are converting up to $44.745 million of his $46 million base salary into a signing bonus, leaving him with the veteran minimum of $1.255 million for this year. The move is expected to free up around $36 million in cap space. Cleveland is also expected to restructure the contracts of other players, including Pro Bowl cornerback Denzel Ward. The 30-year-old Watson is heading into the final year of the five-year, $230 million fully guaranteed contract that he signed back in 2022. Watson did not play at all in 2025 after having two surgeries to fix a torn Achilles he suffered in 2024. He's expected to compete for the starting QB job in 2026 with Shedeur Sanders, but the Browns are expected to bring in more competition via free agency. There's no guarantee Watson ever takes another snap with the Browns.


Joe Flacco vs. Deshaun Watson

Still trying to decide between Flacco and Watson? Check on the latest news to make sure both players are active and healthy. Our PPR projections show that Joe Flacco is projected to score 22.3 points this week while Deshaun Watson is projected to score 0.0 points.