[wwharton]

Quote: Originally Posted by SPTO

Probably not, but he was the straw that stirred the drink in NY and with his pedigree of being a Manning the arrow was pointing towards improvement every year. I'm not saying Flacco doesn't deserve the big bucks i'm just saying I don't think he should be the highest paid player based on one amazing postseason. As I said he's probably going to be in the top 3 at least.

I'm baffled at why so many are saying this is based on one amazing postseason. Flacco turned down $16 mil last year and the organization didn't really have a problem with it... bc he's been progressing and performing at a high level already. But more importantly, Eli's situation is all that needs to be looked at. Nobody thinks he's the best QB in the league... he was the highest paid QB, and he should've been based on when his contract was up and who else was going after a new contract at the time. It's not like a vote of who should make the HOF (or even who is elite right now where you have to pick one). Eli is their QB, he just won a SB, his contract is up, this is today's market... end of story.

Quote: Originally Posted by NYJets

When a guy shows he can be a major part of winning big games against the best defenses and the best QB's, you pay him what it takes to keep him. If I had the choice of Brees or Rodgers for $20 million, or Flacco for $20 million you take Brees or Rodgers, but that's not how it works. It's not easy to find a QB as good as Flacco, when you do, you do what it takes to keep him. If it makes it more difficult to build the rest of your team, so be it, its better than having a lot of cap room but no QB.

Yeah, I really don't get why this keeps getting glossed over. Drew Brees did not negotiate a $20 million contract this year. If his contract were up, he'd be asking for more than that... and as soon as the Saints made sure he didn't reach the market, the Ravens would pay Flacco bc Brees, Brady, and Rodgers aren't available. Couch GMs that think rolling the dice with Alex Smith or Matt Flynn makes more sense than paying the SB MVP $20 mil need to stick to Madden.