A win-win contract extension would make sense for Saints, Drew Brees
 

If Brees does this it should shut up a lot of the 'Brees' is the reason the Saints' posts.

First of all, I want to make it clear that Brees should not take a pay cut, and the Saints almost certainly won’t ask him to.

I absolutely believe Brees is worth those lofty dollar amounts, despite the fact that he turns 36 next month and is coming off a down year with too many costly turnovers.

Brees still gives the Saints their best chance to win going forward and should be able to do so for at least two or three more years. And even if those salaries look a little out of whack, keep in mind that Brees’ deal was intentionally back-loaded for salary-cap purposes to provide the Saints some much-needed cap space in previous years. Brees was such a bargain for so long, these next two years could even be considered well-deserved back pay.

However, I will be very interested to see if Brees considers following Brady’s lead and taking less than market value in future years as part of an extension.

A win-win contract extension would make sense for Saints, Drew Brees - New Orleans Saints Blog - ESPN

Re: A win-win contract extension would make sense for Saints, Drew Brees
 

I think this could be a good plan. Although the int's seem to stand out this season, it was only Drew's 5th worst season as a Saint int. wise. DB still has plenty of miles left on him.

#1) 2010-22 picks @ 3.3%
#2) 2012-19 picks @ 2.8%
#3) 2007-18 picks @ 2.8%
#4) 2008-17 picks @ 2.7%
#5) 2014-17 picks @ 2.6%

Re: A win-win contract extension would make sense for Saints, Drew Brees
 

If there was a way to weight interceptions and their timeliness, impact on a game - this was Brees worst season as a Saint...

For Brees, this season was Rocky III and he got Clubberlanged...

Re: A win-win contract extension would make sense for Saints, Drew Brees
 

3 picks in a meaningless Tampa Bay Finale

Throw in double coverage when another guy is wide open

Re: A win-win contract extension would make sense for Saints, Drew Brees
 

Two of the saddest things I've ever saw in pro football was Johnny Unitas in a San Diego uniform and Joe Namath as a Los Angeles Ram ... Drew ain't there yet and I'll cut him some slack on a rough season behind a porous O/Line ... he did get kinda' "Clubberlanged" though (I'm gonna' use that one, :lol:).

Re: A win-win contract extension would make sense for Saints, Drew Brees
 

I agree that this was likely his worst season but I still think a big part
of it was Drew trying to carry the team and not necessarily him being in decline. That seems to be what he does when things aren't going as planned. That's what all ultra competitive people do.

Re: A win-win contract extension would make sense for Saints, Drew Brees
 

I fully expect a deal to get done. if not either Drew of the Saints front office is not what i believed them to be,

I would not be surprised if Drew puts two demands on the table

1 stop screwing with the OL
2 Get it fixed NOW

Re: A win-win contract extension would make sense for Saints, Drew Brees
 

The eternal salary cap question is 'If you pay a star a ton of money, how can you have enough to pay your support players'? (see Bushrod, Jermon)

My question has always been 'How much is enough'? Brees has earned $125 million in salary alone. He earned $40m in 2012 (as some of us look at the final paycheck of the year, just know that DB was making $109,000 per day)

we will soon learn if Brees wants to win in his final years, or if he wants to fatten the nest egg

Re: A win-win contract extension would make sense for Saints, Drew Brees
 

Nice, lol.

Re: A win-win contract extension would make sense for Saints, Drew Brees
 

Drew will be a FA in 2017. I see them taking care of him this year. 4 year 50 million. Roughly 13 million a year. Frees up cap space and gives him 2 extra years of security. His cap hit this year is 26.4 million. That would free up 13.4 million this year and 14.4 million in 2016. That's a lot to secure our future.

Re: A win-win contract extension would make sense for Saints, Drew Brees
 

A. Bushrod has stunk it up in Chicago, and we replaced him with Armstead
B. Brees is like the 4th or 5th highest paid QB in the league now. That contract is a relative bargain.
C. You really think Brees doesn't care about winning and would rather just make more money? GTFO. Some of you people need your heads examined.

Re: A win-win contract extension would make sense for Saints, Drew Brees
 

Yes Brees had a bad season this year, especially by his standards, you could see the disappointment on his face in the post game interviews after the games we lost.

He does everything he can to help this team win and I hope he is here for a few more seasons yet. . . . . . How can anyone expect any QB to perform well, behind an O line like ours, its awful, absolutely awful!!!!

Brees was thrown to the turf on many occasions this season and always seemed to be scrambling for his life to avoid another big hit or being sacked . . again!

No QB can have a stella season under those conditions!!!!

I think we should consider ourselves lucky to have won the games that we did!!!

GEAUX SAINTS!

Re: A win-win contract extension would make sense for Saints, Drew Brees
 

A. Bushrod was solid for us and was in the Pro Bowl. He was actually replaced by Brown while Armstead was inactive for 13 games

B. Brees is also the 4th or 5th best QB, so how exactly is that a bargain?

C. How do you know what his priorities are? Again, he has made $125 million in his career, and ended up getting every penny he asked for when he held out in 2012. This is a man who is going to get his money

Re: A win-win contract extension would make sense for Saints, Drew Brees
 

But those 3 or 4 ahead of him do not have the security he does with that contract. he has a 99% chance of collecting every penny the others do not.

just ask kapa=puck in san fran. niners have a huge bail out every year built in.

i bet he will have a 10% chance he will get 75% of that contract

that is the difference

Re: A win-win contract extension would make sense for Saints, Drew Brees
 

Restructure and extend Brees just 1 more year (2017), and his cap drops to 18 million per season, which puts him about 7th among QB's. And with other QB's coming up for renewal it'll likely be about the 10th highest QB contract.

I'll take Brees at 18mill per season and LMMFAO at the Brees haters.

Re: A win-win contract extension would make sense for Saints, Drew Brees
 

That deal would be great for the Saints, but I'm not sure Drew agrees to it. For him to agree with that deal, he would have to think that after 2016, the best he could get is 2/12. If he plays out the next two years he will get 18.75 in 2015 and 19.75 in 2016.

What is likely to have to happen is they fully guarantee the 38.5 and extend 3 more years.

The deal could look something like this- (numbers approx)

15 and of 2015 turned to signing bonus which would create a 14 million cap hit in 2015.
Reduce 2016 salary to 10 million( fully guaranteed) creating 20 million cap hit in 2016
2017- Fully guaranteed 20 million salary creating a 23 million cap hit in 2017.
2018- 20 million salary (10 guaranteed) creating a 23 million cap hit in 2018
2019- 20 million salary (0 guaranteed) creating a 23 million cap hit in 2019.

This contract would pretty much guarantee Brees retires a Saint. It takes no money away from him and actually adds 20 million in guarantees. It gives the Saints some flexibility in 2015 and a little more in 2016. Brees could be cut after 2017 with only 16 million in dead money and after 2018 with only 3.

Re: A win-win contract extension would make sense for Saints, Drew Brees
 

take a look at the Brady deal

Under the new deal, Brady changed the $24 million in "skill" guarantee to only "injury" guarantee, meaning that Brady now would get the guaranteed money only if he was injured.

Brady also now can be released by the Patriots without any liability, but he then would become an unrestricted free agent, free to command the type of guaranteed money he has agreed to surrender.

Brady will receive a $1 million bump in each of the three remaining years of the deal. His base salaries will now be $8 million in 2016, $9 million in 2016 and $10 million in 2018.

Tom Brady restructures contract to give New England Patriots $24 million more in cash - ESPN Boston

Does Drew have the same faith in the saints as Tom has in the pats?

Or and I hate to say this, but does Drew care as much as Tom does?

Re: A win-win contract extension would make sense for Saints, Drew Brees
 

I would keep him at what the deal is now, no extention. Two seasons is not that long. If he still has it, go from there. If we have another bad season like this one was, Payton might be in the fire. If that would happen with another coach with a new system Brees would more than likely not want to stay.

Re: A win-win contract extension would make sense for Saints, Drew Brees
 

Anyone notice that there are no more discussions of Brees being in the same league as Brady and Manning? Brady and Manning continue to make the people around them better. Until Brees does the same I wont ever believe that he was worth the money we paid him.

Re: A win-win contract extension would make sense for Saints, Drew Brees
 

It was Brees' contract that led to us losing Carl Nicks

If anyone is to blame for the O line being lackluster its Brees because of the huge contract.

Re: A win-win contract extension would make sense for Saints, Drew Brees
 

Or it was Tampa opening up the purse strings to give Carl Nicks 9.5ml per year to sign with 25ml fully guaranteed salary. Ben Grubbs signed for 7.ml a year with only 15.9ml guaranteed. Nicks wanted the big money and we either would have been in the same situation paying him huge money now as his contract would have needed to be back ended. We now would be scrambling to pay somebody like Cutler or Flacco nearly 20ml a year

Re: A win-win contract extension would make sense for Saints, Drew Brees
 

I notice. He is no longer an automatic inclusion in conversations about the best NFL QB's. And I think that is fair. He has played himself out of the conversation. I am grateful we have him as our QB but at this point when he drops back I equally fear bad things will happen on each snap.

Re: A win-win contract extension would make sense for Saints, Drew Brees
 

Drew deserved the contract he got. He played in New Orleans for below market value for the entire first contract. At any time, the Saints could have torn up that deal and given him more money in those years to keep low the money they had to pay him in the future. They chose to milk the value of the depressed deal he had to sign when he left SD and then hope for goodwill when Drew signed his next contract. When looking at the big cap hits for 2015-16, one must remember that the deal only averaged out at 20/year which is the going rate for top QBs. Drew helped the Saints cap in the first three years of the deal by structuring it in a way to allow them to be able to sign a player like Grubbs or give Graham his money.

Re: A win-win contract extension would make sense for Saints, Drew Brees
 

Brees got $10 million a year in that contract, coming off an injury and with very few other teams interested.
Miami Dolphins: Nick Saban Says Team Offered Drew Brees Contract in 2006 | Bleacher Report

He was underpaid by year 4, but a 25% raise in 2006 over 2005 for a QB with an injured shoulder isn't a bad deal

Re: A win-win contract extension would make sense for Saints, Drew Brees
 

I never would've said Brees was the best out of the top 4 but now I am not sure he is in the same league. His stats are good in some areas and poor in others.

Rodgers
Brady
Manning

These three are in a class by themselves, following them:

Brees

Who I think is in the Great but not Elite class by himself followed by everyone else.

If we were to trade Brees straight up for anyone of the top 3 no one here could complain.

Not that I am looking forward to it, but I am interested to see what another QB could do in this system.

Re: A win-win contract extension would make sense for Saints, Drew Brees
 

How do you play for under market value? Brees agreed to the terms of the deal and no one was looking at him at that point. If anything we overpaid for a QB coming off of a injury that some thought would end his career....lol

Market Value= what teams are willing to pay for said player, not what other players have been paid.

Re: A win-win contract extension would make sense for Saints, Drew Brees
 

Under that logic, then Brees is not overpaid now. The Saints agreed to the contract he received and structured it in the way they did. Had the Saints not signed him to that, he could have easily eclipsed it on the open market. Granted, another team likely would have structured it differently so that the cap hits were not so dramatic in the last two years. But, the Saints needed space those first three years and structured it so they could receive it. So, if the Saints willingly signed that contract it proved he was worth it. Why should they come to him now asking him to reduce what he is being paid?

Re: A win-win contract extension would make sense for Saints, Drew Brees
 

I never said brees should take less money due to his market value. Brees should take less uf he wants to win just like Brady did.

Re: A win-win contract extension would make sense for Saints, Drew Brees
 

Because that formula hasn't worked. Paying one superstar 20% of the cap bastardized our line: downgrades at three positions.
Brees is a smart man, but he has lost a Pro Bowl left tackle, an All-Pro guard, and a serviceable center. He can choose to get sacked and land on a fat wallet , or give up a little dough and get that extra half second in the pocket. Everyone knows that with time Brees can make any receiver look like Calvin Johnson

Re: A win-win contract extension would make sense for Saints, Drew Brees
 

Or the both the player can get paid and Saints could get room now, by extending Brees at market value where the dead money and hit to the cap will come in years that Brees will no longer be with the Saints. This would be a good deal for Brees and cause the Saints issues when he is no longer for the team. That may not be something the team is willing to do.

Re: A win-win contract extension would make sense for Saints, Drew Brees
 

He's got alot of kids to feed. :)

Re: A win-win contract extension would make sense for Saints, Drew Brees
 

Re: A win-win contract extension would make sense for Saints, Drew Brees
 

Agreed that Brees came to NO because the Saints offered the most guaranteed money, but it was clear by the second year of that deal that Brees was outplaying it. At that time, the Saints had the choice of either enjoying the benefits of having a QB playing very well on a deal that was less than what other QBs at that level were being paid, or giving him a new deal which would up his current level of pay, yet buy some future years at a cost lower than they might pay. The Saints and Brees chose to ride out the former deal, so when Brees negotiated he asked for and received the going rate for elite QBs, which has since been surpassed by non-elite QBs. He even did so in a way that gave the Saints greater flexibility in the first three years.

This dilemma isn't unique. The Seahawks are going to face it with Wilson. He's been cheap on his rookie deal. They have let him play that out, but will have to pay market value to keep him if they choose. They benefited from the low cost rookie deal, but it won't be Russell's fault if he asks for and receives the going rate.

Everyone wants to put this on the players while the owners rake in money. The salary cap is there because the owners want it there. They want protection from themselves. They want to be able to look at us fans and say, "sorry, but we want to keep our teams together or sign better players, but the cap prohibits how much we can." Well. who put the cap in place? Surely not the players. The cap exists because owners put it there. And the owners surely don't pay players who play better than their contracts unless they have to.

So, to fault Brees over the contract he signed and expect him to fix the mess is ludicrous. Why not ask Galette to give back some money? OR tell Byrd that he was hurt all last season so he should give it back? Or tell Grubbs to? Because they won't do it and shouldn't have to.

Re: A win-win contract extension would make sense for Saints, Drew Brees
 

First, your missing the point. No one expwcrs brees to take less money, it would be nice if he did but its not expected. If brees wants another title then making a cap friendly extension is something he should do.

Secondly, while the owners put the cap in place it isn't there to "protect them from themselves". The cap is around to protect the league from the union and more importantly to even the playing field. Some owners couldn't afford to be competitive without a cap, and without a cap we would have a few teams buying every player and creating dynasties.

Re: A win-win contract extension would make sense for Saints, Drew Brees
 

The Dallas Cowboys would be to the NFL what the New York Yankees are to Major League Baseball...

Re: A win-win contract extension would make sense for Saints, Drew Brees
 

a bunch of under-achieving jerkwads who everyone hates?

sorry, too easy

Re: A win-win contract extension would make sense for Saints, Drew Brees
 

Just for arguments sake let's say Payton was fired. Would a new coach want Drew? Oh Hell yes!!! He is a top five QB and would be top three with a better line. Drew has earned every dime he's been paid. He could have demanded more money.

Re: A win-win contract extension would make sense for Saints, Drew Brees
 

and that's the paradox-- he could have demanded more money, and the line would be worse.
You can't have both

Re: A win-win contract extension would make sense for Saints, Drew Brees
 

One scenario I keep kicking around in my mind.... giving Brees the extension kinda means that, we will have him around for a loooong time, and the Saints will be pretty much BANKING on the hope that when the inevitable time comes for Brees to leave or hang up his pads, the Saints will pretty much have to get a Russel Wilson-esque rookie QB in there for a couple of years, to hopefully do well and win a Super Bowl for them on the cheap for $390,000 a year. Kicking the can endlessly further and further down the road, we could end up in the very last year, paying the retired Brees a kinda big chunk of dead money against the cap, only for him to retire and sit on the couch in his Wranglers while the Saints play a rookie on a cheap rookie deal -- I could kinda see that happening at the very VERY end of the line when that day comes at last. For whatever impact it has, I think an extension does sorta decrease the chance of a veteran free agent coming in to take Brees' place at the end of the line, whenever that day comes, when the can has ultimately been given that final last kick.

Re: A win-win contract extension would make sense for Saints, Drew Brees
 

No point in planning on a good QB hitting FA it just about never happens