Joe Flacco has been a fixture at quarterback for the Baltimore Ravens for the past decade. He’s had his ups and downs but he’s always shown up for work–in fact, his 122 consecutive regular season starts ranks 7th all time in NFL history. It might be hard to conceive of the Ravens without Flacco under center but that’s what’s going to happen going forward. Baltimore has reached an agreement in principle to deal Flacco to the Denver Broncos.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
NFL rules prohibit the deal from being consummated until the new ‘league year’ begins on March 13. The teams can’t even comment on the transaction. At this point, what Baltimore is getting in return for Flacco is not known. The same sources that broke news of the deal suggest that Denver will send Baltimore a mid round draft pick in exchange for Flacco.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The transaction clarifies the situation at quarterback for both teams. For Baltimore, it means that Lamar Jackson is now the team’s starting quarterback. The Louisville product had a breakout rookie season and managed to get the team to the NFL playoffs where they lost to the Los Angeles Chargers in the Wild Card round. There are some financial upsides for the Ravens as well–once the deal is done Baltimore will save $10.5 million in cap space.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
For Denver, it’s now obvious that new head coach Vic Fangio isn’t interested in having Case Keenum as his starting quarterback. Keenum signed a two-year, $36 million contract in free agency before last season and was the Broncos starter during the 2018 season. He is due $18 million in 2019, with $7 million guaranteed. The Broncos might be smart to keep Keenum around as a back up with Chad Kelly and Kevin Hogan the only other options at quarterback. Keenum had a dismal year statistically last season with 18 TD passes to 15 interceptions. That interception total was tied for the second highest in the NFL.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Flacco is the first quarterback to be dealt but he definitely won’t be the last. NFL observers expect Nick Foles, Ryan Tannehill, Tyrod Taylor and Blake Bortles to be playing for new teams in 2019. The market demand for quarterbacks should be very strong with over a half dozen teams–most notable being the Jacksonville Jaguars, Washington Redskins and Miami Dolphins–looking for new starters to run their offense.<\/p>\n\n\n\n