Former Indianapolis Colts' QB among ESPN's best at securing big pay days
Former Indianapolis Colts quarterback Joe Flacco was named to Bill Barnwell's inaugural "Bag Hall of Fame" class.
So, what exactly is the "Bag Hall of Fame," and what was the criteria for making it? We'll let Barnwell explain.
"I want to reward the players who did the best job of maximizing their leverage and getting paid for their ability," wrote Barnwell. "Players who pushed holdouts to the next level. Players who bet on themselves and were handsomely rewarded for doing so. Players who even managed to represent themselves in negotiations and pocket millions of dollars that would have otherwise gone to an agent."
Flacco was a part of this group because, as Barnwell put it, he turned "one playoff run into two contracts."
After leading the Baltimore Ravens to a Super Bowl win in 2012, Flacco received a six-year, $120.6 million deal, which at the time was the largest contract in NFL history.
A big contract, but what earned Flacco a spot in Barnwell's Bag Hall of Fame is what came next. With this deal being backloaded, meaning that Flacco's salary cap hit took a big jump in Year 4 to nearly $29 million, Baltimore signed Flacco to a three-year extension worth $66 million after only three seasons, which helped lower the cap hit in that current season.
"Between 2013 and 2018, Flacco ended up taking home $124 million in cash, the fourth-most money of any player over that time frame," Barnwell wrote. "(That's the equivalent of about $240 million relative to the current salary cap.) Over that run, he made just one run back to the postseason, winning a total of two playoff games and going 42-41 during the regular season."
Flacco would help quarterback the Colts this past season. He signed with the team as a free agent for one year and $4.5 million.
He appeared in eight games while completing 65% of his passes at a modest 7.1 yards per attempt with 12 touchdowns to seven interceptions. The Colts would go 2-4 in games he started.
Flacco is now back with the Cleveland Browns, looking to embark on his 18th NFL season. He signed a one-year deal worth $4.25 million.
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