The NFL is a crazy league. Just when it seemed like the New York Giants were rolling with Russell Wilson as their starter, they yanked the rug out from under him three weeks in. The jury’s still out on rookie quarterback Jaxson Dart after a brutal second career start, but it just goes to show how quickly things can change.
Look at the Cincinnati Bengals. After finally starting a season off hot, Joe Burrow was sent to IR with a toe injury and was replaced by backup Jake Browning, who has lost three straight games. At the same time, the Cleveland Browns benched Joe Flacco after his 1-3 start to the season for rookie third-rounder Dillon Gabriel.
It was obvious Wilson could have used a fresh start, Cincinnati could use another quarterback, and Flacco’s career was on life support. The Bengals ultimately decided to swing a trade to save their spiraling season... but it wasn’t for the current Giants’ backup. The Athletic’s Dianna Russini reported the Stripes would rather pair Joe with Joe than even entertain a conversation around Wilson or Jameis Winston.
The Bengals internally discussed different options at QB. I’m told the team never called the Giants about trading for either Russell Wilson or Jameis Winston before making a move for veteran Joe Flacco.
— Dianna Russini (@DMRussini) October 7, 2025
Bengals’ Flacco trade highlights how little value the Giants’ QB room holds
Say what you will about Flacco, but to not even consider either of Big Blue’s backups is a direct indictment of the Giants’ coaching staff. How is it that the duo couldn’t even garner consideration for a potential look — over Joe Flacco, of all people?
The 18-year veteran is 1-3 on the season, completing just 58.1 percent of his passes for 815 yards, two touchdowns, and six interceptions. By all accounts, he’s having a terrible season. And the stats back it up.
The Bengals trading for Flacco without even picking up the phone to check in on Russ or Famous Jameis is wild behavior, especially when you look at the graphic below:
Through 5 weeks, Sam Darnold now leads all quarterbacks in both PFF Grade and EPA Per Play pic.twitter.com/wdIFGVXzNq
— Computer Cowboy (@benbbaldwin) October 6, 2025
Flacco ranks near the bottom of the league in both EPA per play and PFF grade — meaning he didn’t produce and didn’t look good trying. Wilson, meanwhile, wasn’t great, but he was miles better by comparison, landing in the “meh but functional” zone. If Cincy was desperate enough to swing a deal for the 40-year-old, how do they not at least call the G-Men about Wilson?
Good luck to the Bengals. Maybe they know something everyone else doesn’t, but it’s pretty clear that whatever magic “January Joe” had left has — pun intended — disappeared.
It honestly feels like a missed opportunity for both sides. The Giants could have flipped either backup for some (likely underwhelming) future asset. Meanwhile, Cincinnati would get a more capable quarterback than 2025’s version of Joe Flacco.
If other teams don’t even see value in Wilson or Winston as break-glass-in-case-of-emergency options, what does that say about the Giants relying on them to mentor Dart? The Bengals didn’t just expose New York’s QB depth — they might’ve exposed the logic behind this entire setup.