The 41-year-old veteran says the league’s quarterback protection rules have swung too far, and he wants two specific roughing the passer triggers removed entirely because of how randomly they can flip games.
Flacco’s argument is that when flags become subjective, the sport stops feeling like it is decided by the players on the field.
Joe Flacco Wants Two Roughing the Passer Calls Removed
Flacco said he does not believe it should be roughing the passer when defenders land on a quarterback, and he also does not think a slap to the head should automatically bring a 15-yard penalty.
He pointed to how those calls can show up in huge moments, or not show up at all, and that inconsistency is what frustrates him most.
Joe Flacco didn’t explicitly use the “S” word. But in a 150-second clip from an interview he gave on Super Bowl 60’s Radio Row, he accused the NFL of going soft.
— The Baltimore Sun (@baltimoresun) February 5, 2026
“The guys that are coming into the league nowadays, they’d look at me like I’m crazy,” the 41-year-old quarterback… pic.twitter.com/fcBjlMx7vV
He also referenced the rulebook language that encourages officials to err on the side of calling roughness against quarterbacks, which is a big reason defenders feel like they are working inside a moving target.
A Super Bowl MVP’s Perspective on How the Game Has Changed
This is coming from someone who has lived in every era of modern quarterback play. Flacco was the No. 18 pick in the 2008 NFL Draft, is a Super Bowl champion and Super Bowl MVP, and if he plays in 2026, it would be his 19th season.
He has piled up 48,176 passing yards with 272 touchdowns and 172 interceptions, and he has taken 422 sacks across his career, so he is not speaking from theory.
This season, the Bengals even sent four players to the Pro Bowl, including Flacco as a backup, which kept him front and center as he laid out his case that younger quarterbacks arrive less battle-tested because the sport is now built to protect them in ways his generation never experienced.
I asked Joe Flacco if the NFL has a quarterback development problem and he launched an impassioned take on how personal calls have changed games and hurt the position and sport.
— Kevin Clark (@bykevinclark) February 4, 2026
"We signed up to get hurt, you might not like that but it's what we kinda did." Watch: pic.twitter.com/51fkGnMnGY
Flacco was traded from the Cleveland Browns to Cincinnati in October, and he remains undecided on 2026 while he evaluates what opportunities are out there.
But whether he plays another year or not, he wants the league to reduce the gray area around roughing the passer, because he believes defensive players are being boxed in and quarterbacks are benefiting from penalties that can decide outcomes at the worst possible times.
Photo Credit: Sam Greene/The Enquirer / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
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