Bengals to re-sign Joe Flacco after Pro Bowl QB picks Cincinnati over Raiders

The Cincinnati Bengals have been active this offseason, adding a ton of talent, with a main focus on the defensive side of the ball after some major struggles last year.

Boye Mafe helps the edge rusher room, Bryan Cook resolves the safety concerns opposite Jordan Battle, and Jonathan Allen is a big interior defensive line pickup. After those moves, the Bengals then turned their attention to the offense.

According to ESPN's Adam Schefter, the Bengals are re-signing Joe Flacco to a new one-year deal to bring the beloved 41-year-old quarterback back to Cincinnati for another year.

Bengals re-sign Joe Flacco to one-year deal

"Free-agent QB Joe Flacco agreed to a 1-year deal with the Bengals, per @JLSports3," Schefter reported.

This is exactly what Bengals fans and the team wanted. Flacco is the perfect backup to Joe Burrow, and that was very evident based on the 2025 production from Flacco after being acquired from the Cleveland Browns.

As ESPN's Jeremy Fowler notes, Flacco had interest from the Las Vegas Raiders, but "He liked the setup in Cincinnati coming off last season," and chose to return to the Bengals for the 2026 NFL season.

Instead of going to the Raiders, where he would've had a chance to start the beginning of the season with Fernando Mendoza (or whoever the Raiders pick No. 1 overall) likely to sit for a little while, Flacco is returning to the Bengals.

Fowler also reports that Flacco is making $6 million on this new deal, with a maximum value of $9 million with incentives. It's a reasonable deal for Flacco, as he's one of the best backup quarterbacks a team can have.

More: Bengals to sign Boye Mafe to $60 million three-year contract

Flacco will be the team's primary backup, with Josh Johnson, another long-time NFL quarterback, being the team's third QB instead of Jake Browning.

Last season, Flacco had 1,664 passing yards with 13 touchdowns and only four interceptions for the Bengals across nine total games and six starts. While he went just 1-5, that was mainly the fault of the defense.

While it was received partially due to other quarterbacks passing on the accolade, Flacco earned his first and only Pro Bowl nod this past season. In 18 seasons, his nine-game stint with Cincinnati was his first Pro Bowl acknowledgment.

Flacco is back in Cincinnati for another season, as the beloved backup and former Super Bowl MVP for the Baltimore Ravens has found a home with the Bengals in 2026.

More Bengals news:

• Dalton Risner’s return gives Joe Burrow his first fully returning OL since NFL debut
• Bengals' Tee Higgins reveals the $700,000 transformation Joe Burrow couldn't resist
• John Franklin-Myers to sign with Titans on $63M deal amid Bengals pursuit
• Bengals to sign Bryan Cook to $40.25 million contract
• ESPN analyst praises Bengals for Boye Mafe $60M signing