Despite what the Ravens may be saying, Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio is convinced that Joe Flacco‘s new contract is simply about saving money. The team’s website published an article earlier this week stating that the extension was about winning, not money.
“We did not do a deal to gain cap room,” Newsome had said (via Florio). “We did a deal so Joe Flacco could be on this football team for the next six years.”
However, the quarterback basically admitted that the new contract was intended to create more cap flexibility.
“We’ve got a bunch of good players and we’ve got a great foundation already but with the way the deal was before I mean it might not have been this year but at some point there was gonna be a strain on what we could do and what kind of guys we could bring in,” Flacco said on PFT Live. “You don’t wanna see any of the guys on your team have to be let go because of some issue with the cap and I wanted to play here. I wanted to play here, I want to play here, continue to play here for a long time.”
Let’s check out some other notes regarding several of the league’s top signal callers…
- Considering the extra flexibility, Flacco would like to see the Ravens bring in some reinforcement on the offensive line. When appearing on PFT Live, the quarterback also seemed to hint that he’d prefer the team re-sign Kelechi Osemele. “The one thing is I would say we need to get our O-line solidified, see who’s going to be there for sure,” Flacco said (via Michael David Smith of ProFootballTalk.com). “We’ve got a couple guys, at least one guy who’s out in the open there, whether we’re going to get a contract done with him or not. So once we get those guys nailed down and see who they’re going to be, I think that’s the biggest part of a championship, as far as the offensive side of the ball.”
- Drew Brees‘ 2016 cap number will balloon to $30MM in the next several days, and Florio wonders if the 37-year-old will break the recent monetary records set by Flacco. A new deal may benefit each side, especially since the Saints will owe the quarterback $43.2MM if they tag him in 2017.
- Even if Brock Osweiler ends up leaving Denver, Mike Klis of 9 News can’t envision the Broncos bringing back Peyton Manning. Despite a successful four years with the franchise, the writer is convinced that it’s time to begin the “post-Manning era.”
