Joe Flacco, in his 17th year in the NFL, is not operating with any assumptions.
Flacco signed with the Colts in March to back up Anthony Richardson, which he did for a couple weeks until the 22-year-old exited the Colts' Week 4 win over the Pittsburgh Steelers with an injury. Flacco stepped in with Richardson sidelined; two weeks after Richardson returned, Flacco was tapped as the Colts' starting quarterback – with no timetable given for if or when the Colts would go back to Richardson.
Two weeks later – after Richardson showed progress behind the scenes – the Colts went back to the 2023 No. 4 overall pick, returning Flacco to his backup role after losses to the Super Bowl-contending Minnesota Vikings and Buffalo Bills.
A month and a half later, this week Flacco again prepared to start a game – though without the guarantee he'll get the opportunity to do so.
"You have to trick yourself a little bit and just roll with the punches and see where those take you," Flacco said. "You really can't get things in your mind that it's going to be a certain way. You never know."
The Colts as of Friday do not know if Richardson, who did not participate in practice this week with back and foot injuries, will be able to start in Sunday's Week 17 game against the New York Giants at MetLife Stadium. A chance exists Richardson will play, but the Colts will determine his status over the next 48 hours, head coach Shane Steichen said.
But with Richardson not practicing, that meant Flacco took those mid-week reps – and he did so understanding he has to be ready to start, even if he doesn't ultimately take a snap against the Giants.
"I think we're just gonna see how these next couple days play out," Flacco said. "For me, at least, you're able to go out there and get some practice reps that make you feel a little more comfortable going into gameday."
Flacco this season has appeared in six games (four starts), and has not played since the Colts' Week 10 loss to the Bills. In those games, Flacco has completed 66.5 percent of his passes – which currently stands as a career-high completion percentage – for 1,167 yards with nine touchdowns, five interceptions and a passer rating of 91.5.
The 39-year-old Flacco, back in Week 5 against the Jacksonville Jaguars, threw for 359 yards with three touchdowns, no interceptions and a passer rating of 121.3, the 10th-highest passer rating he's had over his 189 career starts.
"You can't take for granted playing football games in this league," Flacco said. "So any time you get the opportunity, you have to put yourself back in your shoes when you were 20 years old being a college player wishing to play this game, wishing — man, am I ever going to get a chance to play out my dream. You gotta remind yourself that, man, I'm getting a chance to play out my dream every time you're put in this position. You don't want to make the thing any bigger than it is, but you need to remember that this is a pretty cool job that we get to do and just go out there and have fun and let it loose."
The stakes of Sunday's game for the Colts could be significant. If the Los Angeles Chargers and/or Denver Broncos lose on Saturday, and the Colts win on Sunday, a scenario would exist in which the Colts make the playoffs with a win over the Jaguars in Week 18. A loss to the Giants on Sunday (or wins by the Chargers and Broncos) would eliminate the Colts from playoff contention.
For Flacco, though, you might think the stakes of Week 17 would be significant for him personally if he does play. Just as he hasn't assumed anything about the 2024 season, he's not assuming anything about what lies ahead for his playing career after this year ends. But that's the point: As long as an NFL team needs him, he'll keep playing.
And Flacco, just like everyone else, will find out over the weekend if the Colts need him to win a potentially-critical game on Sunday.
"I just try to stay in the moment," Flacco said. "I mean, people ask me all the time — how long are you going to play? I don't have an answer for them. Just doing it."
