Ravens' Flacco willing to restructure contract to help team

The Baltimore Ravens just completed one of the most disappointing seasons in franchise history, and will spend the offseason attempting to set themselves up for a return to their winning ways.

However, there is one significant obstacle in the way of that potential turnaround: quarterback Joe Flacco's 2016 cap hit.

Flacco carries a cap charge of $28.55 million, an amount that appears unworkable as Baltimore looks to rebuild its roster.

However, the 31-year-old said Thursday he understands his contract could prevent the Ravens from forming a winning team, and would be willing to negotiate a restructured deal, in an appearance on Maryland's Morning News.

"Come on, I want to win, so I want to do everything we can to get something done," Flacco said, according to Jamison Hensley of ESPN. "I don't know exactly what that is or exactly what that's going to be because we haven't talked about it yet. But I know that that's a huge number and it's not really realistic."

Flacco signed a six-year, $120.6-million contract in 2013 which was essentially a three-year deal because of the way the cap charges were structured.

Flacco hasn't carried a cap hit greater than $14.8 million in the three years he's played under the deal, with the money pushed back to 2016 in order to give the Ravens initial flexibility and the ability to reassess Flacco's worth after the 2015 season.

Ravens general manager Ozzie Newsome said earlier this month it isn't vital for the team to restructure Flacco's deal, and they could look to build a roster around his large cap hit.

“We’ll talk about Joe and the contract, then we will put together a plan,” Newsome said, according to Jon Meoli of The Baltimore Sun.

"But hopefully, that if we are strategic enough, we can possibly put together a football team and not necessarily have to redo Joe's contract. That has to be an option that we have to look at, but we will sit down and talk about it, and then at that point, it could be some conversations between (Flacco’s agent) Joe Linta and Pat."

Flacco's season met an abrupt end after he tore his ACL in late November, but he said he's rehabbing and has no doubt he'll be ready for the start of next season.

"I'm coming along great," Flacco said. "I don't think there is any way I'm not going out there ready to go right away. Don't quote me. But that's just me. I have no timetable. I'm really taking it day by day and getting better and each week."