Former Super Bowl champion coach Bruce Arians agreed with Mike Tomlin's comments on the Joe Flacco trade from the Cleveland Browns to the Cincinnati Bengals last week. The Browns benched the veteran in favor of rookie quarterback Dillon Gabriel ahead of the Week 5 duel against the Minnesota Vikings in London.

CINCINNATI — Bengals wide receivers Ja'Marr Chase and Tee Higgins left quite an impression on Joe Flacco in his debut with the team on Sunday. The Bengals lost to the Packers 27-18, but Cincinnati's offense came alive in the second half, scoring on three-straight possessions.

During a media press conference, Bengals quarterback Joe Flacco was asked about the idea of Ja'Marr Chase going off script.

The Bengals’ hope in acquiring Joe Flacco last week was to find a quarterback capable of making the layups. The Cincinnati coaching staff felt that consistently being behind the sticks under backup quarterback Jake Browning played a large role in making the offense non-functional.

Making his first start after the Bengals got him in a trade with the Cleveland Browns, Flacco quickly established connections with star receivers Ja'Marr Chase and Tee Higgins. Chase had 10 receptions for 94 yards and a TD, while Higgins added five catches for 62 yards.

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CINCINNATI, Ohio — Steelers coach Mike Tomlin made shockwaves on Monday when he criticized the Browns and general manager Andrew Berry for trading Flacco to the AFC North rival Bengals. During his press conference on Tuesday, Flacco was asked for his thoughts on Tomlin’s comments.

Flacco was certainly an upgrade at quarterback over Browning and he proved that he might be able to save their season, but the problem is that he's only going to have three days to do it. The 2-5 Bengals will be hosting the 4-1 Pittsburgh Steelers on Thursday night in what is essentially a must-win game for Cincinnati.

Joe Flacco didn't gain traction quickly enough in his Bengals debut to salvage his new club's game against the Packers, but the traction he did gain could pay dividends in the games to come.