Texans loss sets Joe Flacco up to torture Browns fans with another playoff run

Just like we all thought, the red-hot Houston Texans lost to the struggling New York Jets on Thursday night. That’s typically what happens throughout a long NFL season: Things that don’t quite make sense happen, and when they do, they can throw a wrench into a team's best-laid plans.

Take, for example, the AFC South race. With the Texans’ loss, the division title, which previously looked to be all but confirmed to be staying in Houston, just became a little more attainable for the second-place team, the Indianapolis Colts. And that could mean a familiar sight to Cleveland Browns fans down the stretch, as they watch the quarterback that helped them reach the playoffs last season aim to do the same in Indy.

The Indianapolis Colts named Joe Flacco their starter earlier this week, benching former top-five pick, Anthony Richardson. It was a move the Colts felt would position them to win now, but also one that drew scrutiny as it puts their young quarterback in a precarious position moving forward. 

The Browns opted to let Flacco walk this past season, and the Colts wasted now time pouncing on him. Now he could bring that same magic he had in Cleveland to Indianapolis. 

Texans loss sets Joe Flacco up to torture Browns fans with another playoff run

As if it wasn’t tortuous enough watching this season play out as a Browns fan, Flacco putting together a second straight postseason run – and potentially a division title – will probably add salt to a whole lot of wounds in Northeast Ohio. The Browns saw what Flacco was able to do with this team a year ago, and they could have brought him back again this season to do the same. But the team put their faith in Deshaun Watson, and it's got them at the bottom of the AFC North and on a trajectory toward a top-five pick.

It could also have Texans fans in disbelief that they could lose the division to a 40-something Flacco. No one would have thought Flacco would be having a better season than Aaron Rodgers right now. But if he still has that magic left in him from last season, that could very well be the case. 

Houston may be kicking themselves after Thursday night, because it could be the game where they let the Colts back into the division title race that seemed to be sewn up. And if anyone knows what Flacco’s able to do when thrown into the fire, it’s Browns fans.