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Pittsburgh Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin criticized Cleveland Browns general manager Andrew Berry on Monday over the decision to trade Joe Flacco to a team in their division.
The Browns traded the Super Bowl champion quarterback to the Cincinnati Bengals last week after benching him for rookie Dillon Gabriel. The Browns, Steelers and Bengals each play in the AFC North.
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Pittsburgh Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin shouts during the first half of an NFL football game against the Cleveland Browns in Pittsburgh, Sunday, Oct. 12, 2025. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)
Tomlin and the Steelers dominated the Browns in Week 6 and now face the Bengals on Thursday night to start Week 7.
“It shocked me, to be honest,” Tomlin said of the trade, via Pro Football Talk. “Andrew Berry must be a lot smarter than me or us, because it doesn’t make sense to me to trade a quarterback that you think highly of enough to make your first game for a divisional opponent that is suffering in that area. But that’s just my personal feeling.”
Cleveland Browns senior partner and manager Jimmy Haslam, left, and executive vice president of football operations and general manager Andrew Berry, middle, and executive vice president, partner JW Johnson, look on during training camp at the CrossCountry Mortgage Campus on July 28, 2025. (Ken Blaze/Imagn Images)
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Tomlin went on to praise Flacco’s expertise as he becomes more ingrained in the Bengals’ offense.
Flacco led the Browns to a victory against the Green Bay Packers on September 21. His performance in this game gave fans and pundits hope that he would help the Bengals on Sunday.
Flacco had 219 passing yards and two touchdowns, but the Packers won 27-18.
Joe Flacco of the Cincinnati Bengals sits on the bench before an NFL football game between the Green Bay Packers and the Cincinnati Bengals on Sunday, October 12, 2025, in Green Bay, Wisconsin. (AP Photo/Matt Ludtke)
Pittsburgh dominated Cleveland, 23-9, on Sunday. The Steelers are 4-1 this season.
