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As if the revelations and impending punishment from a systematic bounty program isn't enough for New Orleans Saints fans to stomach, record-setting quarterback Drew Brees is locked in a contract dispute, adding more uncertainty to the mix.

Listen to Bobby Hebert, the former Saints quarterback who hosts a popular talk show on WWL-AM in New Orleans.
MORE: Saints GM, coach already met with NFL
"Drew Brees can't walk on water," he says. "But around here, he comes pretty close."

Brees, 33, was the most prominent name among 21 players in the league designated as franchise players by Monday's deadline. While the move will effectively keep Brees off the free agent market that opens on March 13 as talks for a long-term deal with the Saints continue, Hebert believes that by not striking a deal by Monday the team blew a public relations opportunity to counter the fallout from the pay-for-performance scandal.
"It's all about how you spin things," Hebert says.

Weighing the two matters, Hebert contends the team's extended stalemate with the 12th-year quarterback is more unsettling to the fan base than the bounty case. Brees, who passed for an NFL-record 5,476 yards in 2011, is guaranteed the $14.4 million tender for quarterbacks for 2012, but that figure is roughly $4 million less than the NFL-high $18 million average salaries of Tom Brady and Peyton Manning.


Brees situation adds to restlessness of Saints fans

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