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Joe Flacco, a veteran quarterback entering his 18th NFL season, responded to the idea that he should serve as a mentor to fifth-round draft pick Shedeur Sanders during a recent press conference at the Cleveland Browns’ Organized Team Activities (OTAs).
When asked about mentoring younger quarterbacks like Sanders and third-round pick Dillon Gabriel, Flacco deftly navigated a potentially loaded question, refusing to be boxed in by the narrative.
“It’s a good question to bait somebody into answering, and no matter how they answer it, it kind of makes the guy that’s answering it look bad,” Flacco replied. “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.”
Ah, gotta love those media types who just shimmy with excitement at the first opportunity to cause a rift between a quarterback and the person they’d like to see as his eventual replacement.
The Browns don’t need any help in the drama department, however. They’ve done it to themselves.
The high-profile Sanders was drafted into an organization with an already crowded locker full of quarterbacks, including veterans like Flacco, Deshaun Watson, and the recently acquired Kenny Pickett, not to mention Gabriel.
#Browns QB Joe Flacco was asked about mentoring young quarterbacks — and gave one of the best, most thoughtful answers I’ve seen from a veteran on the topic.
This is as well as you can put it.
(via @RuiterWrongFAN)pic.twitter.com/AofI7otnVO
— Ari Meirov (@MySportsUpdate) May 29, 2025
At least Flacco didn’t skirt the issue or skip the question, knowing, as he stated, there would be no answer he could provide that would reflect positively on him.
Instead, he highlighted his commitment to professionalism over forced mentorship. You can see the exact moment the press will run with the angle that there’s friction between Flacco and Shedeur Sanders with his follow-up comments.
“I tend to try to be honest, and I’ve said, ‘I’m not a mentor. I play football.’ And in a quarterback room, there’s a lot of times — already, there’s been already a ton of times — where there’s learning experiences and I have a lot of experience, and I can talk on things, and hopefully they listen,” explained Flacco.
“But it’s not necessarily my job to make sure they listen to me,” he added. “Hey, hopefully you have a really good relationship with the guys that are in the room, and you naturally want to do that.”
In other words, Shedeur will be mentored by simply observing, listening, and keeping his mouth shut. But it’s on him, not Flacco.
RELATED: Shedeur Sanders Blames Older Folks ‘Hatred’ of His Dad for His Own Negative Coverage
It might be tough for Shedeur Sanders to listen, considering he’s been courting controversy before ever taking a snap for the Browns....
