Ongoing Flacco Contract Negotiations (Merged)

[The Excellector]

I always loved how we were simply kool aid drinking purple glasses wearing homers for saying Flacco had the potential to do exactly what he's doing, and they were just REALISTS who saw Joe for what he REALLY WAS. And if we just stopped BALLWASHING it would be SO OBVIOUS.

Welp, I always knew time would prove me right... Feels good man. Feels good.

After the AFC Championship Game, I bumped about a half dozen threads I once made about Joe Flacco and how the offense should have been built around him sooner. Houston had to put me on notice.

[wickedsolo]

I always loved how we were simply kool aid drinking purple glasses wearing homers for saying Flacco had the potential to do exactly what he's doing, and they were just REALISTS who saw Joe for what he REALLY WAS. And if we just stopped BALLWASHING it would be SO OBVIOUS.

Welp, I always knew time would prove me right... Feels good man. Feels good.

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[Paintballguy]

I always loved how we were simply kool aid drinking purple glasses wearing homers for saying Flacco had the potential to do exactly what he's doing, and they were just REALISTS who saw Joe for what he REALLY WAS. And if we just stopped BALLWASHING it would be SO OBVIOUS.

Welp, I always knew time would prove me right... Feels good man. Feels good.

+1 I had a heated Joe Flacco discussion at work before the Denver game about Joe. I basically said that Joe has always been clutch, and I think he's got potential to be great. Of course everyone basically laughed at me like I was an idiot. Well now all my co-workers are on the Joe Flacco bandwagon. It felt so great to say "I told you so".

[HoustonRaven]

He has all of the leverage anyway. Winning the SB would just be icing on the already tasty-delicious cake.


Also, Clayton is speculating what Flacco "MIGHT" ask for...The Ravens were already interested in giving him close to $16-17 mill per year (rumored number was $96 mill over 6 years). So, it isn't a stretch to think that Flacco could see that number rise.


I'd also like to remind everyone about the number of media pundits who claimed that Rice was looking to get an Adrian Peterson-esque deal.

The reality is the media knows jack squat until it happens.

Agreed

[GOTA]

The Ravens have 1 card left. They could franchise Flacco. We all know he's not missing games if that happens. That's the only leverage the Ravens really have and I'm sure they will make it very clear that they are willing to use it.

[RavensRule21215]

If Joe is indeed asking for that type of money.....YOU HAVE NO ONE TO BLAME BUT YOURSELVES AND NEITHER DOES THE FRONT OFFICE!!.

You were the ones talking about how you weren't ready to give Flacco a contract and how he needed to prove it. You were the ones talking about how Flacco needed to show what he was made of, after Cameron was let go. You can't sit there and say that, only to backtrack on your willingness to pay him what you challenged him to prove he was worth (Which was Elite QB money), especially if they win the Super Bowl. What if he gets the Super Bowl MVP?

Let's be real here, that 70 yard TD pass brought this team back from the dead. Their season was five feet under before that throw.

He outplayed Brady last year and should have led the game winning drive to get the team to the Super Bowl, on the road no less. He outplayed Manning this year and outplayed Brady again this year, and this time it really wasn't even close.

Joe Flacco used to be criticized for being a hanger on of sorts, a game manager who benefited from Rice and the defense. Well, Rice hasn't had the best postseason running the ball and Joe's still lighting it up. Joe's arm has now become the 'key' reason why the Ravens are the best team in the AFC, and, perhaps, the NFL.

8 TDs 0 Ints, before the Super Bowl. If the Ravens win and Joe plays well, it's a wrap, he's getting 20 million plus, with 40 plus in guarantees over the length of the deal.

People are also overlooking another important aspect of Flacco's deal. HE SIX YEARS YOUNGER THAN BREES! SIX! He's already had massive playoff success, and now, sans Cam Cameron, one of the best playoff runs for a QB in NFL History (In the ball park). 8 TDs 0 Ints, and back to back road victories against two future first ballot hall of famers.

Instead of seeing what you had in the guy after the Houshmandzadeh drop and the Evans drop, you still couldn't separate Cameron's impact from Flacco's and you told Flacco to prove it. What he accomplished under Cameron is darn near astonishing in itself. Now that he has a better OC calling plays out there, he's on fire.

He makes a statement about how he was the best and how he had to have that sort of confidence to be successful. People gave him heat for it. Cameron got fired and people told him to shut up and prove his worth. He's proved his worth.

Pay the man right.

Newsflash Ravens fans, you have a top quality QB and this is what they can cost.

[RavensRule21215]

The Ravens have 1 card left. They could franchise Flacco. We all know he's not missing games if that happens. That's the only leverage the Ravens really have and I'm sure they will make it very clear that they are willing to use it.

And if they use that to save a few million in the short term they end up handcuffing themselves as far as cap space goes. So it's still a 2 way street when it comes to negotiations. And the bottom line, as at least 2 other posters have already pointed out, is that the Ravens blew it by not locking up Joe before it came to this point.

[HoustonRaven]

And if they use that to save a few million in the short term they end up handcuffing themselves as far as cap space goes. So it's still a 2 way street when it comes to negotiations. And the bottom line, as at least 2 other posters have already pointed out, is that the Ravens blew it by not locking up Joe before it came to this point.

Disagree.

The tag won't handcuff them. It simply pushes some money down the road. And if anything, it messes up the cap next year. If he's making 14 Million next year instead of a more cap friendly 12 Million, that's a blow to any rebuilding efforts for the team.

[wickedsolo]

The Ravens have 1 card left. They could franchise Flacco. We all know he's not missing games if that happens. That's the only leverage the Ravens really have and I'm sure they will make it very clear that they are willing to use it.

At the expense of the rest of their team?

I'm not so sure...

Getting Flacco under a new deal means they can franchise Kruger, Ed Reed, and/or Ellerbe.

Franchising Flacco means they'll likely have to overpay for those guys.

[RavensRule21215]

Disagree.

The tag won't handcuff them. It simply pushes some money down the road. And if anything, it messes up the cap next year. If he's making 14 Million next year instead of a more cap friendly 12 Million, that's a blow to any rebuilding efforts for the team.

Isn't that what I just said?

[RavensRule21215]

At the expense of the rest of their team?

I'm not so sure...

Getting Flacco under a new deal means they can franchise Kruger, Ed Reed, and/or Ellerbe.

Franchising Flacco means they'll likely have to overpay for those guys.

Why in the world would they want to franchise Ed Reed?

[wickedsolo]

Even if he does get a contract upwards of $20 mill per year, that doesn't mean that they can't structure it so his cap numbers are $20 mill per year. Just keep that in mind folks.

Franchise means $14 (give or take) mill WILL ALL be counted against the cap.

$20 mill per year on a 6-7 year deal means that possibly $10-12 could be counted against the cap with the rest in bonuses, escalations, etc.

[wickedsolo]

Why in the world would they want to franchise Ed Reed?

I don't think they would, but it gives them that option if they really feel that they cannot live without Ed Reed next year.

That was my point.

Giving Flacco the tag SEVERELY limits what the front office can do.

Giving Flacco a new deal will still impact the cap, but not so much that they cannot extend fair market deals to Kruger, Ellerbe, Reed, as well as retaining their RFA's/EFA's, and possibly a couple of "right player, right price" free agents.

[HoustonRaven]

Isn't that what I just said?

My bad. Yes, I misread your comments the first time.

[RavensRule21215]

My bad. Yes, I misread your comments the first time.

Cool. Maybe my language was unclear about handcuffing, but we're on the same page.

[RavensRule21215]

I don't think they would, but it gives them that option if they really feel that they cannot live without Ed Reed next year.

That was my point.

Giving Flacco the tag SEVERELY limits what the front office can do.

Giving Flacco a new deal will still impact the cap, but not so much that they cannot extend fair market deals to Kruger, Ellerbe, Reed, as well as retaining their RFA's/EFA's, and possibly a couple of "right player, right price" free agents.

Exactly. It just gives the Ravens more options to NOT slap the franchise tag on Joe, so I think we're saying the same thing. Plus, it goes further towards good will to not franchise a player if you don't have to. The Ravens tried to get a lower deal, it didn't work out, now you pay the man who is your franchise QB.

[chicagoravensfan]

Eli Manning is the perfect comparison in my opinion. Within the context of the right team situation he can lead them all the way (obviously). The difference between that and Brady/Brees/Peyton/Rodgers is that they can do it with a subpar offensive line and late round pick WRs.

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[Kyle Cactus]

And the bottom line, as at least 2 other posters have already pointed out, is that the Ravens blew it by not locking up Joe before it came to this point.

The Ravens don't have a crystal ball. At several points during the season, when Joe wasn't playing nearly as well as he is now, many board members were saying how that was actually working in our favor.

And it's not like the Ravens didn't try to work out a deal with Joe.

[RavensRule21215]

The Ravens don't have a crystal ball. At several points during the season, when Joe wasn't playing nearly as well as he is now, many board members were saying how that was actually working in our favor.

And it's not like the Ravens didn't try to work out a deal with Joe.

It didn't require any "crystal ball". Joe has put up numbers that few if any QBs have put up in their first 5 years. And he did it with a micro managing OC, a sub par O-line, and less than elite WRs. So just stop it already, okay? If the Ravens didn't see what they had in Joe Flacco, then it's on them, not on Joe. If plain old fans could see what Joe brought to the table, it's incumbent upon a billion dollar franchise to see it too.

[Paintballguy]

Eli Manning is the perfect comparison in my opinion. Within the context of the right team situation he can lead them all the way (obviously). The difference between that and Brady/Brees/Peyton/Rodgers is that they can do it with a subpar offensive line and late round pick WRs.

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Brady doesn't have a "subpar" offensive line. The Patriots line graded out as 2nd best according to PFF. Also, Peyton has the 4th best o-line, and the Saints have the 6th best o-line. The Packers were the only team out of the 4 you mentioned that had a subpar o-line. Aaron Rodgers will take a lot of sacks holding onto the ball though. He was sacked 51 times in the season.

I don't buy into the late round WR's either. Brady, Peyton, Brees and Rodgers all have a lot of talent to throw to. Brady has Welker, Gronk and Hernandez. Peyton has Eric Decker, Demarius Thomas, and Tamme. Brees has Colston, Henderson, Moore and Graham. Finally, Rodgers has Jordy Nelson, James Jones, Randall Cobb, Greg Jennings, etc... It doesn't matter where a guy is drafted if they turn out to be good. Plus there are some 1st rounders on that list.