Joe Flacco slammed by ex-teammate for 'ridiculous' rant on being a mentor in Browns QB room

Joe Flacco's recent remarks did not sit well with former Baltimore Ravens teammate Chris Canty

Former NFL standout Chris Canty, who played alongside Joe Flacco with the Baltimore Ravens, slammed his ex-teammate's comments from OTAs with the Cleveland Browns this week after the veteran quarterback said he doesn't see himself as a mentor for younger players.

Flacco is one of four players vying for reps in a Browns quarterback room that includes Kenny Pickett and a pair of rookies — Dillon Gabriel and Shedeur Sanders.

"Mentoring a young player is only going to make that player better, which makes the team better," Canty said Friday on ESPN's "Unsportsmanlike." "You're only as strong as your weakest link. The whole point of the exercise is that everybody makes everyone better. That's why you practice. You're making each other better. It's what you're supposed to do. You do that with the reps on the practice field, but you also do that by sharing points and notes in the film room.

"It's a ridiculous answer from Joe Flacco," Canty continued. "There's no guarantee Joe Flacco is going to be healthy for 17 games, especially at 40 years old."

Flacco said this week he wasn't going to be "baited" by the mentor question and signed with the Browns to play football. Flacco's not the only veteran quarterback to sidestep the mentor mentality in recent years and certainly won't be the last.

Canty disagrees with the optics, however.

"It's stupid to not consider trying to do everything that you can to coach these other guys up," Canty said. "Nobody is saying you have to do your job at a lesser level in terms of performing on the field, but if you can happen to impart some wisdom onto those guys who you're spending 16 hours a day with in training camp, why wouldn't you do that?"

He continued: "Just because you're mentoring, doesn't mean you can't be the starting quarterback. His answer is non-sensical. I hate going so hard at one of my former teammates, but it's one of the dumbest things I've heard Joe Flacco ever say."

Cleveland signed Flacco in April to compete with Pickett for the starting job with Deshaun Watson on the mend for the 2025 season. The Browns then took Gabriel in the third round before selecting Sanders in the fifth of the NFL Draft to further bolster the depth chart and add competition to the room.

NFL insider Jeremy Fowler touched on Cleveland's predicament this week during OTAs and the possible end game for the Browns. He doesn't expect the franchise to keep four quarterbacks on their active roster for the season.

"I still think they look at quarterback pieces like currency and value, so if somebody goes down to an injury in training camp they have somebody they can potentially trade," Fowler said Wednesday on ESPN Cleveland radio. "Maybe it's Pickett, maybe it's one of the rookies. But I can see that sort of maneuvering. I have a hard time thinking they keep (four) on the roster. I think it might be three. And then you can try a practice squad player or seek a trade."