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How Flacco’s income stacks up with the mayor’s, Mayo Shattuck’s and yours

Some Baltimore-centric comparisons to put the $120.6M deal in context

Above: Any way you look at it, it’s big bucks.

How times have changed. Back when professional athletes were mere mortals, Johnny Unitas lived in a Baltimore rowhouse and, during his rookie year with the Colts, worked off-season for Bethlehem Steel at Sparrows Point.

Joe Flacco needn’t worry about sweating it out in a steel mill (even if one were still available) given the six-year $120.6 million contract he is expected to sign today at the Ravens practice facility in Owings Mills.

The 28-year-old QB who brought the Lombardi Trophy to Baltimore will become the highest paid player in National Football League history, edging out Drew Brees, who signed a five-year, $100 million deal with the New Orleans Saints.

$37,665 Per Pass

Flacco’s payout – a little over $20 million next year, according to media reports – amounts to $1 million a game in the regular season of four pre-season and 16 regular games – which, in turn, translates into $37,665 a pass based on the 531 passes he made last season.

Stated differently, Flacco will be making more a day during the Raven’s regular season ($167,000) than Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake makes in a full year ($155,493).

The only person we could think of who roughly compares in the compensation sweepstakes to Flacco is Exelon Corp. chairman Mayo A. Shattuck III, who received $17.38 million in 2011 for arranging to sell Constellation and its BGE subsidiary to Exelon.

Other Baltimore notables can be accurately called salary midgets compared to “Joe Cool.”

• Like the top-paid non-profit executive in town, Ronald J. Daniels – $1.27 million (in 2010) for running Johns Hopkins University and Hopkins Medical Centers.

• Like the builder of a billion-dollar sports-apparel company – $1.1 million to Kevin A. Plank, CEO of Under Armour.

• Like a bigshot Wall Street player – $4.94 million for former Legg Mason chief Mark R. Fetting.

And compared to people who still live in rowhouses and sometimes put their lives at risk, the salary gap becomes, well, fill in your own word:

• $65,000 for a Baltimore police officer with 20 years of seniority.

• $61,000 for a firefighter (pump operator).

• $45,000 for a public school teacher with a master’s degree.

• $39,000 for a social services coordinator.

• $29,000 for the DPW guy who picks up your garbage.

• $17,800 for a community aide at the Recreation & Parks Department – this sum being less than half of a single Joe Flacco throw next season.

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