WhoDat!656

The delay in the Saints getting a long-term deal done with Drew Brees has been one of the most baffling stories of the NFL offseason.

Both sides have until July 16 to carve out such a deal, and I still think that will happen. In fact, I came up with 23.5 million reasons a deal will be struck in the next week. The Saints can't afford to franchise him next year both from the financial and the personnel standpoint.

Unless the Saints plan to release him -- which can't be the case -- the salary-cap impact of a $23.6 million franchise tag in 2013 would be devastating to the franchise, so let's study the numbers.

The cap is only expected to increase from $120.6 million to around $121 million. With one unsigned draft choice, the Saints are already about $3 million over for next year and they have about $2.2 million of room for this season. Franchising Brees again would put the Saints more than $26 million over the cap and give them limited options for next year.

NFL - Saints facing a costly penalty in Drew Brees negotiations - ESPN

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