Common sense applied to the Joe Flacco contract

First off, to all the haters or just straight numbskulls, a players pay has more to do with timing and position then their "Eliteness" so dont bother bashing your protruding eyebrows against the preverbial brick wall.  


As for the deal, It was basiclly impossible for any other result to take place rather than the one that passed with Joe Flacco and the Ravens.  

Flacco turned down an offer from the Ravens  last offseason and bet on himself, and won.  He executed one of the best post-season runs of all time, won superbowl MVP, has the best winning record in the NFL over the corse of his career, has 5 straight playoff apperances and 0 one-and-dones.  Last but not least, Flacco has the most road playoff wins in NFL history.  I think its absurd to argue that the Ravens wernt handcuffed to give Flacco his money.  


The choices presented to the Ravens were simple.  It was ether overpay Flacco due to the timing of the deal OR let him walk when he is playing fantastic football at age 28, circle the sewer drain with an Alex Smith, undeserving 1st round pick rookie or hope Tyrod Taylor would all of a sudden become fantastic.  The price for the Ravens isn't a great deal BUT they are one of the best ran front offices in the league so I feel that whatever decisions they make, I can stand behind them and know a competent team will always be on the field every Sunday.  

Well said. You're right, he's definitely overpaid, but that's the price of keeping a franchise QB (even only the 10th best franchise QB) in todays NFL. Point is, the Ravens searched forever to find someone as competent as Flacco, so while it's easy to say ditch him rather than overpay him, it's not easy to watch a team stay below .500 for 5-20 years while searching for their next competent QB. I remember the Kyle Boller experiment vividly. It wasn't pretty.

No kidding "bet on himself and won". Those 4 playoff games were the best 4 consecutive games of his career. And they helped push his salary to what it is. Here's a frustrating hypothetical..... what if Rahim Moore actually knew how to cover a pass? He would have probably intercepted that pass, and the Raven's would have been out in the divisional round. It's possible the contract would have been very similar regardless, but really we'll never know.
I'm happy for Flacco. But I admit some frustration as an average fan in knowing damm well he's not the best QB in the NFL and watching him get a record setting contract. It's not fair, but it is the NFL. And that is how it works. Could be worse. Look at Matt Cassell's contract, or Jamarcus Russell. This isn't even comparable to how bad those were considering dollars to talent.

I agree that the Ravens pretty much had to do what they did.  I am also thrilled that they had to do it.  We will see how they do now with Flacco having to carry the team on his shoulders.  He certainly has had success, but a large part of that was due to the team around him as much as it was due to him.  Now he will have to shoulder that load and I am not sold that he can do it.  But I could be wrong.  Only time will tell.  For now I am happy, but in the end I may not be.

Flacco already pretty much shouldered the load. He did this entire postseason. If Flacco didn't play the way he did, the Ravens don't even sniff the SB.

Their defense wasn't very good. It's funny that people just blindly associate the Ravens with defense because that's been their reputation forever.

Their defense was barely average all year long and wasn't much better in the playoffs. Getting Ray Lewis back did nothing to help. In fact, it could be argued his play on the field actually hurt them.

Scuba,

I agree with you that he shouldered the load this postseason.  He played very well.  I just do not think that he is the type of QB that can do it year in and year out.  That is just my opinion and I could be way off.  As a Steelers fan, maybe that is me just hoping he can't do it.  

That being said, he was great in the postseason.  But he really struggled badly at times during the regular season.  Most teams that win the SB have some luck along the way to win it all.  But I can think of two horrible plays by the opposing team that would have kept them from even making the SB and were possibly two of the luckiest plays in NFL history.
1.  The 4 and I think it was about 24 against the Chargers where Ray Rice took about a 2 yard dump off pass and ran the rest of the way for the first down, which eventually led to them winning that game.  They would have lost that game had it not been for that play and I believe they would not even have made the playoffs had they not converted there.
2.  Even worse than that was the 70 yard TD pass to Jacoby Jones in the game against the Broncos.  How can you let that happen.

I know it just sounds like sour grapes and I will admit that the Ravens took advantage of the opportunities that they were given.  I congradulate them on their SB win.  As I said, most teams that win the SB had some luck along the way.  But these two plays, maybe because they are so fresh in my mind, seem to stand out as two of the luckiest.  

So, we will see how Flacco does when the luck is not on his side.  He has proven to be a very good QB.  Just don't think he is worth what he is getting and I think it will hurt the Ravens going forward.  Again, may just be me hoping.  We will see as all any of us has right now is an opinion.  Facts are yet to come. 

I'm extremely dissappointed in Joe Flacco's contract. They should have given him 12 years 400 million, all guaranteed. That would have set the Ravens up perfectly for the next decade.

Here is Kraft's perspective on Tom Brady's additional $27 million guaranteed contact:

 "[I've] been thinking about this for three or four years. I was probably wearing my fan hat as much as anything else," Kraft said. "I just didn't want to ever see this become like Joe Montana leaving San Francisco, Emmitt Smith leaving Dallas, Brett Favre leaving Green Bay, Peyton Manning leaving Indianapolis. If Tom Brady played out this current contract and left us, there was no doubt in my mind that someone out there would pay him top dollar, and they should, for his ability, his leadership and his unselfishness."

Ummm..... NESport, how is that relevant???

I think it is supposed to be some sort of perspective comparison RTT RUTH

At this point he has played into that contract.  I mean they won the Super Bowl and he was a key reason why they won.  does this make him "elite" no...But this is sports and people get overpaid all the time.  Time for Flacco to get his money and move on... No big story here......except he is what the highest paid QB now... But again that's sports.

how many qb can you count on to win the sb? mind you not be on the winning team but win it?

rodgers, brady, brees, manning/manning and big ben, ya i know subjective, but when you can go out and win it you get paid for it, 

flacco may be on that list after the next season or two. what he did in this years playoffs, what he has continually done on the road thoughout his career in the playoffs, more so this year considering as a two time dbl digit dog for all practical purposes, i mean this guy played as close to perfect as you can. his deep throws could not have been any better. ya, you can say what if this or that did or didn't happen, but that is nothing but conjecture, or bs.

screw what he does in the regular season, the playoffs are what counts and he produced as well as any qb ever. balt had to lock him up, and rightfully did so. after all he signed the latest contract, next season or the next after there will be a qb signing a bigger one and perhaps not deserve is as much as flacco.

then again maybe they overpaid, should have let him go making sure they had enough $$$ to re-sign a couple of their own who may now have to walk and traded for smith. ya, right!!!

This thread is so refreshing.  This is one of the best threads that I've read on these forums in a long time in terms of folks making good solid arguments, no bickering, no name calling, etc.

If only all the other posts were so pragmatic and civil.  Thanks guys!

<strong>Rodgers, brady, brees, manning/manning and big ben, ya i know subjective, but when you can go out and win it you get paid for it, </strong><br /><br /><strong>flacco may be on that list after the next season or two. what he did in this years playoffs<br /><br /><br /></strong>Flacco I believe has been in the playoffs ever year,and  no one and dones  Some of the QB's you mentioned above  didnt go to the playoffs this year  or half of their careers.   3 of the QB's you listed have the same no# of SB wins as Flacco  even though in the league  twice as longer  or longer.

no name calling, etc.


Cbs Formatting  you suck!!!

     <strong>Rodgers, brady, brees, manning/manning and big ben, ya i know subjective, but when you can go out and win it you get paid for it, </strong><br /><br /><strong>flacco may be on that list after the next season or two. what he did in this years playoffs<br /><br /><br /></strong>Flacco I believe has been in the playoffs ever year,and  no one and dones  Some of the QB's you mentioned above  didnt go to the playoffs this year  or half of their careers.   3 of the QB's you listed have the same no# of SB wins as Flacco  even though in the league  twice as longer  or longer.

sorta hard to get your point, we'll give you a mulligan.

my point:

rodgers/gb=11 season gave up nfl record passing yds, 12 season, no d, no rushing game, really nothing but him, 13 will be telling as his wr and perhaps te gone, last 2 playoffs lost to eventual sb winners, in a pretty tough division. how many other qb's could take gb to where he did???

brady/ne=won a few sb, ne got cocky, thought they could trade down, not pay 1st rds cause we can find just as good talent in 2,3,4th rds and not wreck cap. damn, didn't work out, couldn't replace seymour, samuel, perhaps a couple lbs as well. run game no threat, wr mediocre, still a perennial afc threat. what qb could do what he has with ne???

brees/no=won a sb,wreaked havoc vs opp def without any superstar support, spread it around, then all hell broke loose as nfl has never seen, team/coach/managment wrecked. no other team in history (imho) has to pick up the pieces as they do. somehow feel they will have to be reckoned with this year. how many other qb's could do what he did???

manning sr/ind/den=well, how many other qb's could accomplish what he did with those teams???

manning jr/nyg=the one on this list with the best support, maybe nothing more than right place at right time. nevertheless once can be a abberation, twice no mistake, can make a case others could have done as well giving the situation, but who??? bottom line when all was on the line he came thru, twice... 

ig ben/pitt=ditto manning jr but had to work a bit harder, age may have finally caught up with pitt as injuries have with ben, may fall off the list but make no mistake if they do not get there he won't be the reason, no problem at all stacking him up with the best in a winner take all.

take a look at the qb's i have named and questions i raised,  who you could have done what they did considering their situation, or if you prefer, who you would substitute for them. other then the others i have on this list, i can't come up with any.

in next season or two flacco will either be on or off this list. imho he will be, and i think balt believes the same.  


            
  

I'll skip Brady and Rodgers.  No disrespect meant to any player
 

brees/no=won a sb,wreaked havoc vs opp def without any superstar support, spread it around, then all hell broke loose as nfl has never seen, team/coach/managment wrecked. no other team in history (imho) has to pick up the pieces as they do. somehow feel they will have to be reckoned with this year. how many other qb's could do what he did???

If by "what he did" you mean throw for all the yards, please note that Brees has thrown the ball the past three years more than any other QB in the league.  I bet a few other QBs could throw for 5k+ when they attempt 650 or more passes a year  Brady did it on about 40 less passes in 2011 and Stafford with about the same.  In fcat, this past season, if Matt Ryan, Cam Newton, Peyton Manning, Carson Palmer, Matt Schaub, and Joe Flacco had all thrown for 650 attempts, they'd likely have crossed that 5k mark also.

manning sr/ind/den=well, how many other qb's could accomplish what he did with those teams???

Regular season performance, not many.  Playoff performance, many.  Tim Tebow won more games with Denver and Andrew Luch made the playoffs with a worse off cast than Peyton ever had in Indy.

manning jr/nyg=the one on this list with the best support, maybe nothing more than right place at right time. nevertheless once can be a abberation, twice no mistake, can make a case others could have done as well giving the situation, but who??? bottom line when all was on the line he came thru, twice

Those playoff runs were pretty good.  Special things happened, can't even argue that.

ig ben/pitt=ditto manning jr but had to work a bit harder, age may have finally caught up with pitt as injuries have with ben, may fall off the list but make no mistake if they do not get there he won't be the reason, no problem at all stacking him up with the best in a winner take all

The bolded is a joke right?  They don't make the playoffs because of Ben.  This past season they missed it because of Ben's annual injury AND because of his consistently game ending INTs after he came back.  It's already been noted that the Steelers only make the playoffs with a top 4 defense.  They DON'T even make it with the number 5 defense (2009). 
   
You forgot Flacco though.

Flacco/Balt=100% playoff success rate and 0% one and done rate.  Wins superbowl with a playoff run of 1,100+ yards, 11 TDs, 0 INTs, 117 QB rating.  All happened with the worst defense of his playing career.  Winningest road QB in NFL history.  Undefeated at home in playoffs.  Who else has/can do what he's done?
    
Oh and yeah, I don't think Joe deserved 120.6M either (maybe over 8 years as opposed to 6) but I can understand him getting it.  The Ravens value the playoffs over the regular season and he's been great there the last three years (17 to 2 TD to INT ratio) and should have been to back to back superbowls if not for Lee Evans in 2011

   
  

rav#1...may have missed the gist a tad. in all cases it had nothing to do with reg season all with playoffs/sb,  .

brees, spread it around was directed to his sb win, didn't have any "superstar" he was able to utilize every off weapon he had to its utmost potential, in other words he was able to make the sum of the parts greater than the whole. so when he won the sb what other qb than the ones i listed were capable of that???

i have to take exception with the comment on peyton, yes he had a couple great backs, he also turned everything around in indy, perhaps no other qb ever could have accomplished what he did with them. saying that i thought payton was a choker when he came into the nfl, couldn't win the big one, he sure proved me wrong.

with ben, although once again subjective, other than the qb's i named who do you think could have won pitt sb???ya maybe a couple others, but he came thru when it was on the line, can't take that away from him, def or not.

per flacco, go back a few posts on tis thread, in fact run my history on any post pertaining to flacco, i have admired at what he has done and would never incinuate he is not worth the money balt gave him or that balt error in locking him up. with his playoff performances, and not just this year, he could be on his way to be a all-time great,


btw-being a Lions fan i know all to well about passing yrds and tossing the ball around. and flacco was the reason that on sept 13 2012 i layed $$$ down in vegas on balt to win the sb. he repayed me 9 times over, as in cashing at 9-1.       

rav#1, my post on feb 6 flacco is now elite thread.

imho flacco needs one more run to be elite...his on-the-road wins (not just this year), accuracy in tossing the long ball, ability to improvise, and avoiding mistakes on the road as a dbl digit dog have been most impressive.  he has exceeded my expectations of him. that being said i sorta of consider him in the eli catagory as of now.

doesn't hurt he delivered me a 9-1 winner for the sb

brady/ne=won a few sb, ne got cocky, thought they could trade down, not pay 1st rds cause we can find just as good talent in 2,3,4th rds and not wreck cap. damn, didn't work out, couldn't replace seymour, samuel, perhaps a couple lbs as well. run game no threat, wr mediocre, still a perennial afc threat. what qb could do what he has with ne???


Pats with Bb  always gave up higher picks  to get more.  Look Brady came out in 6th round  and  Montana  3rd.   I wish they replaced Samuels earlier  or they might have another SB when he let that Eli passes go right through his arms  and game over.  They usually keep guys  till their better days are behind them.  Vrabel, McGinnest, Bruschi, Harrison,Brown to name a few.  But I'll take 5 SB appearances in 11 years that Brady has started.  Guys like Eli and Ben get it done in big games and when in playoffs.  Rodgers is a great QB  and they need to protect him more  and fill some holes.  Brees  5-4  in playoffs  They are over the cap by 5 mill right now I believe, and need to get him a defense

Well then my apologies.  That's what happens when someone (me in this case) only reads the last few comments 

with ben, although once again subjective, other than the qb's i named who do you think could have won pitt sb???ya maybe a couple others, but he came thru when it was on the line, can't take that away from him, def or not

Ehh, I've had my up and down feelings towards Ben (not surprising as a Ravens fan).  I think many QBs could have won the Seattle superbowl (Tim Tebow included) but not many could have done what he did in the three games prior