It's another subset in the species known in my circle as "fish you throw back, wonder how you ended up catching, and hope it never happens again".
I grew up in W. Central Minnesota and saw all kinds of critters snagged in the lakes and creeks.. we never had the flathead to contend with tho.
we had carp and suckers in abundance. I remember seeing a swarms of bullheads in the water and then netting them,, uughhh. ya may as well cut the line and just moveon...;-)