The Ravens—and Joe Flacco especially—are hoping receiver Anquan Boldin (known as "Quan") will agree to restructure his contract's final year and stay with the team. Right now 'Quan's high cap number is a liability. 'Quan says if he is released by the Ravens he will retire. There's got to be a way to get something done when both sides clearly want to stay together.
That's the thing about NFL contracts— they're usually not guaranteed for the final year of the contract.
Boldin has one year left on his contract and is due $6 million next season. He recently said he’d retire if released because he doesn’t want to play for any other team.
But Joe Flacco’s cap hit this year is reportedly just $6.8 million and the Ravens now have about $11.26 million in salary cap space, which could help them avoid having to make wide receiver Anquan Boldin a cap casualty.
When Flacco signed a new long-term contract Monday, it was structured in a way to give the Ravens some much-needed flexibility under this year’s $123 million salary cap.
Flacco is glad to help the Ravens bring back his favorite target.
“He’s a big part of why I’m standing here today talking to you guys,” Flacco said just minutes after signing his contract. “It definitely increases my confidence that we’ll have him back, and I hope we do.”
In Boldin’s three years in Baltimore, he’s been the team’s top receiver, catching 186 passes for 1,815 yards and 14 touchdowns. He’s also proven the ability to take over games and step up on the biggest stages, just like he did this postseason.
In the Ravens’ four playoff games this year, Boldin registered 22 catches for 380 yards and four touchdowns. He caught the game’s first touchdown in the Super Bowl and hauled in a critical third-down grab in the fourth quarter to set up the game-winning field goal.
“I’ll tell you what: Anquan was a beast in those four games,” Flacco said. “It was awesome to have him out there. You guys saw some of the catches that he made – none more important than the third down against San Francisco. He’s been a big part of this offense.”
By getting Flacco signed to a long-term deal before having to use the franchise tag, the Ravens freed up the salary cap space, which makes Flacco confident that they’ll be able to keep the core of their team together for the coming years.
“I know we have a lot of good players on the team,” Flacco said. “I know I love to play with those guys, so hopefully it works out very good for the organization, and we can keep as many people as we need.”
Boldin is not a flashy Julio Jones-type receiver. He is a possession receiver who also blocks and make big plays. Whereas Jones is primarily a wideout, usually running 6, 7 and 9 routes which require vertical speed, 'Quan is primarily a slot receiver which requires strength and excellent hands as opposed to pure speed, because a lot of his receptions are made in traffic.
Joe Flacco is only as good as the receiving corps he has around him. He said it himself, 'Quan is one big reason why Joe got paid Monday. He made Joe look like a 120 million-dollar QB. Yes, business is business, but part of business is to keep your highest paid leader of the team happy, and that means bringing back Flacco's most trusted and go-to receiver in Anquan Boldin.
Boldin has at least one more good year in him. Realistically guys like Tandon Doss are not yet ready to fill Boldin's shoes in the slot. I think the Ravens will realize this fact and make 'Quan an offer he could refuse…but won't.
Add The Sports Daily to your Google News Feed!
