SmashMouth

Wide receiver Willie Snead will be a member of the New Orleans Saints in 2017, but the price of his contract remains unclear.

The Saints plan to submit a tender to retain Snead, an exclusive rights free agent, by the deadline Thursday, but his camp is hopeful New Orleans will eventually offer more than the one-year minimum salary of $615,000.





"We look forward to having additional conversations," said agent Jim Miller, who met with the Saints during the combine last week in Indianapolis. "They like Willie, and we like the Saints."

Snead, 24, has been highly productive with the Saints the past two seasons. In 2015, he had 69 catchers for 984 yards and three touchdowns, and he followed that with 72 catches for 895 yards and four touchdowns -- as well as a 50-yard touchdown pass -- in 2016.

However, because Snead has just two accrued seasons -- he didn't appear in any games as a rookie -- he's now an exclusive rights free agent, which means he can't negotiate with other teams.

The Saints could ask Snead to play on the minimum salary in 2017, but considering how important he is to the offense, it would be a show of good faith to offer him more, whether it's a higher salary or longer deal.

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