Joe Flacco Bio
Joseph Vincent Flacco is an American professional football quarterback for the Cincinnati Bengals of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Pittsburgh Panthers and the Delaware Fightin’ Blue Hens before being selected by the Baltimore Ravens in the first round of the 2008 NFL draft. Flacco was Baltimore’s starting quarterback from 2008 until midway through the 2018 season, helping lead the Ravens to the playoffs six times during his tenure and winning Super Bowl XLVII.
Over the course of his NFL career, Flacco has also spent time with the Denver Broncos, New York Jets, Philadelphia Eagles, Cleveland Browns, and Indianapolis Colts. Known for having one of the strongest arms in the league at the height of his career, he has compiled impressive career passing totals and earned a reputation as a clutch postseason performer.
Early Life and Background
Joe Flacco was born on January 16, 1985, in Voorhees Township, New Jersey, and raised in nearby Audubon, New Jersey. He is the eldest of six children born to Karen (née Madden) and Steve Flacco. The Flacco family is originally from Haddon Township, New Jersey.
At Audubon High School, Flacco played football, baseball, and basketball, and served as the starting quarterback for the Green Wave. Regarded as a three-star recruit by Rivals.com, he was listed as No. 39 among quarterback prospects in the class of 2003. His early multi-sport experience helped him develop the arm strength and athleticism that would later define his professional career.
Path to American Football
Flacco began his college career at the University of Pittsburgh, where he was redshirted as a freshman in 2003 for a Panthers team that finished 8–5. In 2004, he served as the backup quarterback behind starter Tyler Palko, seeing limited action in three games and finishing the season with one completion for 11 yards. Wanting a clearer path to playing time, Flacco transferred to the University of Delaware in 2005, where he had to sit out a season and pay his own way after Pittsburgh declined to release his scholarship.
At Delaware, Flacco saw his first full-time starting action during the 2006 season, throwing for 2,783 yards, 18 touchdowns, and 10 interceptions. He broke out as a senior in 2007, leading the Fightin’ Blue Hens to an 8–3 regular-season record while compiling 4,263 passing yards, 23 touchdowns, and just 5 interceptions. He guided Delaware to the FCS National Championship Game, earning ECAC Player of the Year, First-team All-CAA, CAA Co-Offensive Player of the Year, and Third-team All-American honors. By the end of his college career, he had set 20 school records at Delaware.
Joe Flacco Career
Baltimore Ravens Era (2008–2018)
Flacco was selected by the Ravens as the 18th overall pick in the 2008 NFL draft, becoming the highest drafted player ever from the University of Delaware and the first Division I-FCS quarterback selected in the first round since Steve McNair in 1995. He became the team’s opening-day starter and went on to win the Diet Pepsi NFL Rookie of the Year award after leading Baltimore to the AFC Championship Game. In the 2008 postseason, he became the first rookie quarterback in NFL history to win two playoff games.
From 2008 through 2014, Flacco led the Ravens to the playoffs in every season. He set career highs in 2014 with 3,986 passing yards and 27 touchdowns, leading Baltimore to a 10–6 record and another playoff run. He capped the 2012 postseason with one of the most memorable stretches in league history, throwing 11 touchdowns without an interception and earning Super Bowl XLVII Most Valuable Player honors after a 34–31 win over the San Francisco 49ers. Following that championship run, he signed a six-year contract worth $120.6 million in March 2013, briefly making him the highest-paid quarterback in NFL history.
Denver Broncos and Journeyman Years (2019–2022)
On February 13, 2019, the Ravens agreed to trade Flacco to the Denver Broncos, and the deal became official on March 13, 2019. He started the first eight games of the season, throwing for 1,822 yards, six touchdowns, and five interceptions, but a neck injury ended his year prematurely. The Broncos released him in March 2020 with a failed physical designation, and he underwent neck surgery the following month.
Flacco joined the New York Jets in 2020 as a backup to Sam Darnold, then signed with the Philadelphia Eagles in 2021 before being traded back to the Jets after Zach Wilson went down with an injury. He spent time with the Jets in 2021 and 2022, serving primarily in a veteran backup role during a stretch in which he waited for another opportunity to start.
Cleveland Browns Comeback (2023–2025)
Flacco joined the Cleveland Browns midway through the 2023 season following a season-ending injury to Deshaun Watson. He led Cleveland to a playoff berth and was named the NFL’s Comeback Player of the Year. He then signed a one-year deal with the Indianapolis Colts in 2024 before returning to Cleveland in 2025. A few weeks into the 2025 season, Flacco was traded to the Cincinnati Bengals after they lost Joe Burrow to injury.
Cincinnati Bengals Era (2025–Present)
Flacco joined the Cincinnati Bengals in the middle of the 2025 season following Joe Burrow’s injury. As of the 2025 NFL season, Flacco has the most career passing yards and touchdowns for any quarterback who has never been to a Pro Bowl, having declined his 2015 Pro Bowl invitation following the birth of his third son. His current contract with the Bengals runs through 2026.
Notable Events and Milestones
Flacco’s signature moment came on January 12, 2013, when he launched a 70-yard touchdown pass to Jacoby Jones in the closing seconds of the AFC Divisional Playoff Game against the Denver Broncos, a play known as the “Mile High Miracle” that helped send Baltimore to the AFC Championship and eventually to Super Bowl XLVII. He tied Joe Montana’s single-postseason record with 11 touchdown passes without an interception during that run. He also became the first quarterback in NFL history to start and win a playoff game in each of his first three seasons.
Joe Flacco Career Wins
Flacco has accumulated a long list of notable wins across his NFL career, including a Super Bowl XLVII championship with the Baltimore Ravens in February 2013. He was also part of two AFC North division titles during his time in Baltimore and led the Cleveland Browns to a 2023 playoff berth that earned him the league’s Comeback Player of the Year award.
Joe Flacco Family
Family Background and Racing Lineage
Joe Flacco is the eldest of five boys in his family and also has a sister, Stephanie. His brothers are Mike, John, Brian, and Tom. Brother Mike was selected in the 31st round of the 2009 Major League Baseball draft by the Baltimore Orioles, while brother John walked on as a receiver with the Stanford Cardinal football team. The youngest brother, Tom Flacco, enrolled at Western Michigan University in 2015, played quarterback for two seasons, transferred to Rutgers in 2017 and then Towson in 2018, and was signed by the Saskatchewan Roughriders of the Canadian Football League in 2021.
Personal Life
Flacco married his wife Dana in a Catholic ceremony in 2011, at the same church where his parents were married. Together they have five children; their first son was born in June 2012, a second son was born in September 2013, a third son was born in January 2015, a daughter was born in September 2016, and a fourth son was born in April 2018. The birth of his third son caused Flacco to decline his 2015 Pro Bowl invitation. While playing for the Ravens, the family lived in the Baltimore suburb of Reisterstown, Maryland, before selling their home for $1.6 million in 2019. In 2018, Flacco made an undisclosed donation to University of Delaware athletics, the largest from a Delaware alumnus in the NFL, and on May 25, 2024, he received an honorary doctorate degree in Humane Letters from the University of Delaware.
2025 Season Performance
The 2025 season began with Flacco back on the Cleveland Browns, where he was expected to serve as a veteran starter. A few weeks into the year, however, he was traded to the Cincinnati Bengals after franchise quarterback Joe Burrow went down with an injury. The trade gave Flacco yet another opportunity to start for a contender late in his career, mirroring his 2023 late-season arrival in Cleveland that had produced a playoff run and a Comeback Player of the Year award.
As of the 2025 NFL season, Flacco holds the most career passing yards and touchdowns of any quarterback who has never been selected to a Pro Bowl. He is now working within a Bengals offense that leans heavily on its passing attack, giving him a chance to add to his already impressive career totals. His contract with Cincinnati runs through 2026, providing a measure of stability as he continues to start for the team.