How Does Winning Super Bowl XLVII Affect Joe Flacco's Legacy as an NFL Quarterback and His Upcoming Contract Negotiations?

Is Joe Flacco an elite quarterback? It depends on your definition of the word. When you compare his performance last night to that of NFL QB legends, it's not hard to say that at the very least he had one of the best playoff runs in the league's history.

Flacco stands to make some serious money this off-season as a restricted free agent. He couldn't have picked a better year to catch fire in the playoffs, because his rookie contract expired after the clock struck 0:00 in New Orleans on Sunday.

If someone told you before the season that a relatively low-key quarterback would win Super Bowl XLVII, you probably wouldn't believe it. Even if you did, would Flacco be the guy you chose to pull it off? Probably not, unless you were a Baltimore Ravens fan or a die hard from Joe's Delaware Blue Hens days.

Flacco didn't just win the Super Bowl. He steered his team right into the teeth of one of the league's best defenses and threw for three touchdowns in the process. He maintained his flawless post-season, ending his four games with 11 TD's and no interceptions. No previous quarterback has had that many TD's and that few INT's in the same span, and Flacco accomplished that with 1,000 passing yards too.

Before last night's win, people outside of Maryland were more likely to call Flacco another Trent Dilfer than they were a superstar. Dilfer was the QB on the only other Ravens Super Bowl Championship team, and only got the trip to Disney World because of the murder trial Ray Lewis was mired in. Although Flacco didn't have a sparkling regular season, he stepped his game up once January rolled around. It doesn't seem like such a surprise that the Ravens lollygagged through four months of regular season games, but won each of their playoff match-ups.

The only question about Joe Flacco right now is whether or not he can keep his performance up for a few years. There's no doubt that he was the best quarterback in the NFL in January and February of 2013, but to keep his newly-earned status as an elite play-caller, he'll have to put a few more impressive years under his belt.