Joe Flacco's agent said last offseason that his client deserved top-five quarterback money. Most of us scoffed. Now Flacco's camp is aiming even higher.
CNBC asked Flacco's agent Joe Linta on Tuesday if Flacco should be the highest-paid quarterback in the NFL. The answer was simple: "Yes."
"When you do a contract of this magnitude, you look at what is the player's body of work presently, and what are the expectations going forward over the next four, five or six years," Linta said. "Joe wins on both accounts."
(Commence "sticking it" to Baltimore Ravens owner Steve Bisciotti.)
This won't be an easy negotiation for the Ravens, but these are good problems to have. Flacco simply hasn't performed over a 16-game regular season like Aaron Rodgers, Drew Brees, Tom Brady or Peyton Manning. Flacco has the skill set to make any throw, and he played like a quarterback worthy of such a contract during the playoffs this year. But he just hasn't been that guy consistently enough.
A lot will be written about Flacco's contract this offseason, but the end result is preordained. He's not going anywhere. A deal eventually will be done. Linta is just setting the highest bar possible before negotiating begins in earnest.
Follow Gregg Rosenthal on Twitter @greggrosenthal.
