Drew Brees prefers extension, but is ready to play out current deal
 

The Saints and quarterback Drew Brees still haven’t worked out a new contract that would reduce his $30 million cap number for 2016. Publicly, both sides continue to say all the right things.

“I’m very confident that it will [get done],” Brees told Alex Marvez and Gil Brandt of SiriusXM NFL Radio on Tuesday.

So what if it doesn’t get done?

“I’ve got one year left, so it’s not the end of the world if it doesn’t and we play through the year,” Brees said. “I did that back in 2011. I’d rather not do that.”

The difference between 2011 and 2016 is that the Saints would be looking at a franchise tender of $43.2 million to keep Brees around for 2017, which means that the franchise tag most likely would not be applied to Brees. Which makes rumors of the Saints making a play for a guy like Paxton Lynch even more intriguing, since that would place Brees squarely in the Sam Bradford “stop-gap” category for the rest of 2016. It’s territory with which Brees is particularly familiar, given that he was playing for the Chargers when Philip Rivers arrived in 2004 as the fourth overall pick.

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Re: Drew Brees prefers extension, but is ready to play out current deal
 

I just don't see Loomis and Co treating Brees the same way San Diego did but I will say that Brees time in NO is coming to an end sooner rather than later

Re: Drew Brees prefers extension, but is ready to play out current deal
 

And when Brees does leave the Saints, fans will be wringing their hands like a bleeding heart liberal and saying the Saints should have paid Brees what he wanted.

Re: Drew Brees prefers extension, but is ready to play out current deal
 

I just don't see any QB in this draft being the answer especially when the first and second will already be gone. I say pay the man . He still has two to three years easily. If we get shored up on all the other positions it will make a Young QB transition a lot easier. Give a young QB the same situation Brees has had the last few seasons and he might get killed on the field. At the very least his confidence will be lost forever aka Tim Couch.

Re: Drew Brees prefers extension, but is ready to play out current deal
 

I disagree; a mobile quarterback would be okay in our current offense. Drew is still one of the lesser sacked qbs in the league.

Re: Drew Brees prefers extension, but is ready to play out current deal
 

Drew doesn't want to play his contract out. The last time he played the final year of a contract he got injured and almost no one wanted him then. Thank God!

He was holding out looking for the big contract and it bit him in the arse when he got injured. I don't see him going that route again. Besides, he needs to retire a Saint if for no other reason than the endorsement contracts. Who's going to recognize him wearing a Browns jersey?

I doubt he wants to shake up his happy little family moving to a new location. He probably doesn't want to live in an empty apartment away from his family either. He is going to want every penny possible to provide for his family and I understand that. So, he needs to sign a reasonable extension and sign a few more endorsement contracts as well.

Re: Drew Brees prefers extension, but is ready to play out current deal
 

All this is doing is making outsiders think we are going to draft Lynch. How can we honestly be contenders next year when you have all this drama with Drew? This contact complication also does not help the rest of the team. Everyone needs to get on the same page.

Re: Drew Brees prefers extension, but is ready to play out current deal
 

Who knows? Maybe Drew, Sean and Mick are all doing this together. I mean would it be so hard to believe that they're literally just throwing stuff out there and acting like they're interested in a QB in this draft so they can move up or down? For all we know, Drew's already agreed to a deal but everyone is playing games as a smoke screen for draft day. I wouldn't put it past Sean...lol.

They're probably all just sitting back laughing at the idea that the media is pumping up hype about them drafting a QB so they can mind ninja the other teams on draft day. Lol. That'd be hilarious!

Re: Drew Brees prefers extension, but is ready to play out current deal
 

I have one thing to say.......Drew will retire a Saint.

Re: Drew Brees prefers extension, but is ready to play out current deal
 

Amen

this is a smoke screen. They are lining up players and not wanting to show their hands.

The media has been trying to bury the Saints and say Brees is too old, too short and washed up for years

I hope Sean and Mickey trade down - get quality defensive players in a draft loaded with them

last year we got some lb core
this year we need secondary and dt and right tackle

hope Sean doesn't chase a high draft pick QB or WR

Re: Drew Brees prefers extension, but is ready to play out current deal
 

I will be one of those people. Let's talk about a recently signed QB contract:

4 years, $72 million, $37 million guaranteed.

Here's the stat line 2015:

7 games started 5-2 record 61.8 completion percentage, 1900+ yards, 10 TD, 6 INT.

Now Brees' stat line from 2015:

15 games started, 7-8 record, 68.3 completion percentage, 4870 yards, 32 TD, 11 INT.

My point is that Brees is in a league where a QB with essentially no starts and no stats is worth $18 million a year and nearly $40 million in guaranteed money.

It really would not be overpaying Brees for a 3 year $75 million, with all the dollars guaranteed. And while the Saints are in no position to execute such a contract, there are teams in this league that could, and might do so.

That's the market now.

Honestly, I don't think any of us really knows what Brees' wants in compensation. But if you look at all the ridiculous QB contracts that have been signed since he signed his extension in 2012, it's certain that even reasonable numbers are in the stratosphere.

SFIAH

Re: Drew Brees prefers extension, but is ready to play out current deal
 

Tune in tomorrow for another thrilling episode of "The Edge of As The Offseason Turns At Night For The Bold And The Beautiful General Hospital Fans"

Re: Drew Brees prefers extension, but is ready to play out current deal
 

2-5 actually

Re: Drew Brees prefers extension, but is ready to play out current deal
 

That's Osweiler's new contract with the Texans. He has started exactly 7 games ever with a 5-2 record.

SFIAH

Re: Drew Brees prefers extension, but is ready to play out current deal
 

Drew is not going any where.

Re: Drew Brees prefers extension, but is ready to play out current deal
 

I don't think it makes sense that this Brees situation would be a smoke screen. If this deal had gotten done sooner, the Saints would have been in play for some quality free agents. Why would you purposefully drag this out for the mere POSSIBILITY that it will help you get the player you want in the draft, and then hope that player works out?

All the buzz about wanting this guy, or that guy, or trading up for the 1st pick... That's the kind of smoke screen you can do. You don't screw yourself in free agency on purpose, just for the off chance it might help you in the draft. That would be a really dumb strategy.

Re: Drew Brees prefers extension, but is ready to play out current deal
 

There is no "Brees situation". The Brees extension, which I guarantee will take place, has always been in a position to be completed AFTER the draft as I have been preaching for months. In an interview yesterday Brees came right out and said the exact same thing saying ...

Everything is right on track. Stop worrying, everybody.

Re: Drew Brees prefers extension, but is ready to play out current deal
 

There is a discussion ongoing, centered around Drew Brees. Therefore I will call it the Brees "situation" if I jolly well please. My point, in case you missed it (you did), was that this is no smoke screen. I did not say no deal will be done. I'm sure it will be done.

Rookie contracts are not that big of a deal. I see no point in waiting till after the draft, simply for that reason. I'm a fan of building through both the draft and free agency. I don't like an all in on one or the other, philosophy. Our Super Bowl season will show you the balance of how that team was constructed. Lot's of key free agents, and draftees. Plus Vilma, via trade.

This isn't like Major league Baseball, where you have 40 freaking rounds to stockpile every year, to build with, and to use prospects as currency.

Re: Drew Brees prefers extension, but is ready to play out current deal
 

First of all, rookie contracts are still a bit of a deal if you are interested in trading back up into the first round for a second pick. And free agency is not yet over. There are still a number of possibilities out there that teams are waiting on to find out how they did with the draft. Trades are also a possibility. There is no reason to finalize the Brees deal before the draft unless it became necessary. It could have if Norman became an option for the Saints, but he settled with Washington right out of the gate and never even gave the Saints a chance.

Oh, and I got your point about the smoke screen. Most of my reply was guided toward other members around here.

Re: Drew Brees prefers extension, but is ready to play out current deal
 

There should be more of a plan in place in terms of the draft. With the limits on what rookies can make, you should be able to ballpark an idea of what you'll be spending. Set a high water mark on what you would reasonably spend on the draft, and negotiate with your current players under those parameters. What's to stop Brees and management from going back and tweeking his deal a little bit, which ever direction, after the draft? I'm not aware of any rule that prohibits re-working a deal multiple times in an off season.

This is all assuming that they ever had an intention of signing any other free agents. If they ACTUALLY had no interest, then I think that's a mistake.

Re: Drew Brees prefers extension, but is ready to play out current deal
 

Why "retweak" when you can wait and know exactly what is needed, not to mention that all contracts have to get the approval of the league and I'm not sure how they look upon tweaking. And I have a feeling that if the Saints don't fill their needs through the draft that FA moves will be made.

Re: Drew Brees prefers extension, but is ready to play out current deal
 

The answer to your question can be found in multiple posts that I've just made. It would have made sense in terms of being in play for more free agents. Now it doesn't really matter. There are guys out there, but not top shelf one's. I'm not talking about 100 million dollar guys. It would have been nice to make a play on someone like Derek Wolfe or Terrance Knighton.

By the way, I don't think the league has a problem with tweaking a deal. The Saints do it all the time.

Re: Drew Brees prefers extension, but is ready to play out current deal
 

The Saints have never not been in play for a free agent. There was cap space available in other players that was exercised through extensions for the more common FA's and if a big one that they wanted had come into play they could have easily finalized the Brees deal earlier.

No, the Saints actually do not. What they do is exercise clauses written into the contracts such as converting roster bonuses into signing bonuses that can then be amortized. These can happen once per year in years that have the roster bonus stated. They also commonly work out extensions with players but these usually only happen once per contract in the final year. I can't remember a contract being renegotiated, or tweaked, at any other time. I'm not saying it has never happened, but I can't think of one.

Re: Drew Brees prefers extension, but is ready to play out current deal
 

All of the roster and signing bonus type of deals are what I'm referring to. It doesn't really matter if it's in a clause, or agreed to at a later time and added in. That's no different than an extension, in principle. There are player and team options at the end of some contracts, but in the case of Drew's deal there is nothing stating that he or the team will have the option of extending his deal and spreading out the cap hit.

I know you don't see a "re-reworking", if you will, often. If ever. I'm just wondering why it can't be done, if it's such a big deal to the team to wait and see what happens after the draft. It's an honest question.

Also, I still would like to know why you are so confident that the Saints were in play for other free agents. If they were supposedly in play for Josh Norman, then they surely could have landed one of the others if it would have been so easy, as you suggest.

Re: Drew Brees prefers extension, but is ready to play out current deal
 

Oh I thought you were talking about Luck.

Re: Drew Brees prefers extension, but is ready to play out current deal
 

Re: Drew Brees prefers extension, but is ready to play out current deal
 

so be it

Re: Drew Brees prefers extension, but is ready to play out current deal
 

Why should he? He is under contract that he and his agent negotiated, signed...

Brees has put up astounding numbers, even skewed to today's game, and has been compensated for it.

But I have more confidence in Coach Payton's offensive schemes, system than I do with the quarterback...

Need I remind anyone that Luke McCown nearly beat the SuperBowl runnerups in their own house? With the same team Brees also led?

Brees goes to another team, he's no where near the quarterback he is with Coach Payton running the offense...

Re: Drew Brees prefers extension, but is ready to play out current deal
 

What part of "Contract" don't they understand?

Re: Drew Brees prefers extension, but is ready to play out current deal
 

A deal will get done.