Joe Flacco leaves without a deal after working out for the Browns, but could be signed by next week to help replace Deshaun Watson

CLEVELAND, Ohio — Joe Flacco spent a career beating the Cleveland Browns, and now he might join them.

Flacco, who last broke the hearts of Browns fans with a come-from-behind last-minute victory with the Jets last season, worked out for the Browns Friday morning, a league source confirmed. He was the only quarterback trying his hand at the job Friday at the club facility, trying out with a host of players at other positions.

Flacco, 38, left without a deal, but could be signed by the Browns by next week. They’ll add a third quarterback to either the practice squad or active roster before they begin preparations for next week’s game against the Broncos, and Flacco is their primary target to help replaced Deshaun Watson, who’s out for the season with a fractured glenoid bone his right throwing shoulder.

In the meantime, fifth-round pick Dorian Thompson will start Sunday against the Steelers in a clash of two 6-3 teams battling for second place in the AFC North behind the 8-3 Ravens.

The Browns hope, of course, that Thompson-Robinson plays much better than he did in his first NFL start, the 28-3 loss to the Ravens in Week 4. In that game, he threw three interceptions and earned a 25.3 rating, but was thrown into the fire just 2 1/2 hours after discovering he’d start. He wasn’t as prepared as he should’ve been, but has studied tenfold since that time. If Thompson-Robinson plays as well as the Browns hope he does, Flacco won’t see the field.

But the Steelers are 24-5 against rookie quarterbacks under Mike Tomlin, and plan to make life difficult on him Sunday.

“We try to put it all on his shoulders,” Steelers defensive tackle Cam Heyward told former Browns cornerback Jason McCourty Thursday on NFL Network’s Good Morning Football. “By doing that, you’ve got to stop the run. I know they don’t have Nick Chubb, but they have that big offensive line that does an amazing job for them.

The Browns are tied for second in the NFL with 147.9 rushing yards per game, and the Steelers are 25th against the run, allowing 131.2 yards per game. But the Steelers’ plan is still to make Thompson-Robinson beat them.

But the plan is still to make the rookie beat them, said Heyward, who missed the first Browns meeting with his calf injury.

“We’ve got to make sure we make him feel uncomfortable, make sure he has to pass the ball,” said Heyward. “He can’t just rely on that run game. And then getting sacks, turnovers — that’s a storied remedy for  a long day for a quarterback.

If Thompson-Robinson falters, the Browns could try turning to Flacco, the former Super Bowl MVP and 15-year NFL veteran. Flacco is 99-81 with 42,320 yards, 232 touchdowns and 147 interceptions. He has a 89.3 career passer rating.

Against the Browns, he’s 18-3, with 17 of those victories coming with the rival Ravens, where he spent 13 years. Last season, he started the first three games for the Jets before giving way to rookie Zach Wilson. He also started the season finale, going 1-3 with five TDs, three INTs and a 75.2 rating. He’s been out of football this season.

Flacco would bring a veteran presence to the room that it’s currently missing. The Browns also have Walker, who’s 5-4 as a starter, but has one touchdown pass and five interceptions in three appearances this season in place of Watson.

“Maturity and experience, incredible wisdom that, I mean as much as Deshaun has played, Flacco has seen more,” Myles Garrett said Friday. “He’s been to the highest levels. He’s won. And he can provide that a little bit of a mentor role if he doesn’t see the field — being there and being a consistent leader.”

Last season, Flacco orchestrated a 31-30 come-from-behind victory over the Browns in Week 2 as member of the Jets after the Browns led 30-17 with 1:55 remaining. It was one of the most epic collapses in the history of the Browns, and portended the disappointing 7-10 season.

In the final 82 seconds of the game, Flacco burned the Browns with a 66-yard touchdown pass to Corey Davis, and then a 15-yard game-winner to rookie Garrett Wilson after they recovered the onside kick.

Flacco threw for 307 yards that game with four TDs and no INTs. The Browns’ meltdown included finger pointing among defenders and doubts about Joe Woods’ job as defensive coordinator. He was ultimately fired after the season and replaced by Jim Schwartz, who boasts the No. 1 defense this season. Based on the strength of their defense, the Browns believe they can still reach the Super Bowl this season.

Browns linebacker Anthony Walker Jr., one of the team captains, believes Flacco’s presence would be good for everyone, much like veteran QB Jacoby Brissett’s was last season.

“Anytime you can have a veteran presence in the locker room, in the quarterback room, or any room, it’s always going to do wonders just to have that veteran presence around,” Walker said. “A guy like Joe Flacco, obviously he’s been around, he’s played in a Super Bowl. He has a lot of experience in the NFL. You can never take that away from anybody. We’ll see what happened with that. It’s not my job, but obviously the veteran presence in any room is huge.”

Receiver Elijah Moore, who played with Flacco in 2021-22 with the Jets and caught three passes for 41 yards in that last-second victory, knows firsthand how valuable he’d be.

“I had a great time with him,” Moore said. “He’s a great leader. He’s a vet and I know anyone that would be around him would have a good time and learn a lot.”

He’s confident that Flacco, who’s thrown 232 touchdowns against 147 interceptions, would be great for a team gunning for the playoffs.

“I feel like Joe’s a leader,” he said. “I feel like he has a lot of experience. He knows football, and how could you not want to lean on somebody who knows football? That’s played the game for a long time at a very, very high level, the highest level. MVP level. So major respect to him.”

There’s no question that Flacco would be a tremendous help to Thompson-Robinson, who’s starting Sunday’s game against the Steelers.

“Definitely. That’s the main thing,” Moore said. “That’s probably the main focus of why he would come as well too.”

Tight end David Njoku would be all for it. The Browns are all excited about DTR can do his second time out, but Super Bowl MVPs don’t come around very often.

“It’s exciting,” he said. “Just seeing his name come up, I’m sure it brought interest. I’m still iffy. He’s been with the Ravens for a long time, so I don’t know if this is an inside job, so me just getting in my head. I gotta talk to him in person before anything (laughing).”