Baltimore Ravens quarterback is now the highest-paid player in NFL history after winning the Super Bowl, but there's a chance it would not have happened that way if his teammates took some of his advice at the end of the game in New Orleans.
According to ProFootballTalk.com, Flacco made comments on the sidelines during the final kick return by Ted Ginn at the Super Bowl, telling teammates to run onto the field to tackle him if he got away from the Ravens coverage players.
Flacco spoke at a press conference on Monday about the quotes and mentioned that he made them in jest and that they were due to the nervousness he felt at the end of the game. For the record, the referees could have awarded a touchdown to the 49ers had anyone listened to Flacco.
"I saw that people were kind of getting a little mad at me for that," Flacco said, via the Baltimore Sun. "There was four seconds left in the game, and that was probably the only time all year that I was really, really nervous. I thought it was a pretty funny thing to kind of get my mind off of the fact that there is a possibility that he could run this thing back. I'm sure if I did do that, I'm sure that they could probably give the guy a touchdown."
Wideout Anquan Boldin said he thought the quarterback was serious, although Flacco claims the quote was just a joke to shake off his nerves.
"Yeah, not really serious," Flacco said. "They all looked at me like I was crazy. I told the linemen and they kind of backed up for a second like, 'What are you talking about?' But, hey, it was just all in good fun, kind of to distract my mind a little bit."
Flacco just signed a six-year, $120 million contract to become the highest-paid player in the NFL and he celebrated with a trip to McDonald's.
CLICK HERE for info on the press conference and video.
According to Darren Rovell at ESPN.com, Flacco celebrated signing his record $120 million contract with the Ravens by pulling through a McDonald's in Aberdeen and ordering himself a 10-piece McNugget meal, with fries and an unsweetened iced tea for $6.99.
Sherry Norman, who said she is a crazy Ravens fan, recognized Flacco and took a picture of him as he was driving after he picked up his order, which cost less than $10. Rovell writes that the stop was 40 miles from the McDonald's and in the direction of Flacco's New Jersey home.
"I kept saying to the people I work with, 'Doesn't that look like Joe Flacco?,' " Norman said. "And then he turned towards the window and it was him."
Norman asked Flacco if he was indeed the quarterback who just signed the deal and after asking to take a picture, the Ravens star obliged. Flacco signed the deal after taking the Ravens to the Super Bowl and defeating the San Francisco 49ers in New Orleans.
