The Ravens may have placed their franchise tag on Ray Rice, but both the team and the running back are working on a long-term deal. The franchise amount for running backs in 2012 is $7.7 million. "As we have in the past, placing the franchise designation on a player allows us to keep negotiating on a long-term contract," general manager Ozzie Newsome said. "Our goal is to keep Ray Rice a Raven. We've done this with other outstanding players through our history, including Haloti Ngata a year ago." The team applied the tag to Ngata following the 2010 season before signing him to a five-year, $61 million extension in September. "Yeah, I definitely prefer long-term over franchise tag," Rice said in the past. "I'm not going to complain about the franchise tag, either. It puts yourself in a position where you play that year out and guys have done it, but I prefer the long-term."