Very much in the journeyman phase of his career, Joe Flacco’s next team will be his fourth in as many seasons. Flacco’s free-agent tour has taken him to San Francisco with the 36-year-old reportedly meeting with Niners brass to discuss a backup opportunity behind incumbent starter Jimmy Garoppolo. As he often is, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network was first on the story.
Flacco, who previously led the Ravens to six playoff appearances including a win in Super Bowl XLVII (over the 49ers, ironically enough), is coming off a one-year stint with New York, where he served as a veteran mentor for Sam Darnold. The University of Delaware alum saw action in five games including four starts for the Jets, completing just 55.2 percent of his passes with four turnovers (three interceptions, one lost fumble) during that stretch. The Jets did not win any of Flacco’s four starts in place of Darnold, who spent much of the year battling shoulder issues.
Though admittedly well past his prime, if signed by San Francisco, Flacco would at least represent an upgrade on previous backups Nick Mullens and C.J. Beathard, both of whom are free agents. The 49ers have recently been linked to disgruntled Texans star Deshaun Watson, though it would obviously take an enormous haul (a trio of first-round picks at minimum) to pry him from Houston. Garoppolo has been effective when healthy, winning 22 of his 30 career starts for the Niners. However, his continued durability concerns (23 combined absences over his last three seasons) make finding a competent fill-in all the more necessary.
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