Bengals beat out Raiders and others to bring back Joe Flacco

Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Flacco (16) waits for a play in the third quarter of the NFL Week 7 game between the Cincinnati Bengals and the Pittsburgh Steelers at Paycor Stadium in downtown Cincinnati on Thursday, Oct. 16, 2025. The Bengals won, 33-31.

| Sam Greene/The Enquirer / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images The Bengals brought back Joe Flacco on a one-year deal on Tuesday afternoon, giving the team one of the best veteran backup quarterback options on their roster this year. The reported numbers were a bit of a surprise, but it gives the Bengals a solid option should Joe Burrow go down with injury once again. Apparently, the Las Vegas Raiders were heavily interested in Flacco, with the Bengals stepping up to land the 41-year-old signal-caller.

Flacco had interest from the Las Vegas Raiders, among others. But he liked the setup in Cincinnati coming off last season. https://t.

co/WURWMHin9C — Jeremy Fowler (@JFowlerESPN) March 24, 2026 While the Bengals prioritized re-signing Flacco, they also had the understanding that he was going to search for the best offer, and one that had the potential to start. While he doesn’t receive the latter in Cincinnati, he got a lucrative backup deal (one year, $6 million, worth up to $9 million) and returns to a place he seemed to have greatly enjoyed when coming over midseason. After Burrow went down, Cincinnati went to backup Jake Browning for three starts.