The biggest domino of the New Orleans Saints offseason has fallen. Drew Brees and the Saints have agreed on a two-year, $50 million contract extension that will ensure the Hall of Fame-bound quarterback finishes his career in the Crescent City. NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport first reported the blockbuster deal’s completion.
This move is important for several reasons; first and foremost, the Saints finally have a quarterback under contract for the 2020 season, allowing them to field an offense at complete strength. Besides that obvious bonus, the structure in Brees’ new deal changes his salary cap hit, giving the Saints a better idea of the resources they can spend in free agency.
Like his previous contract, Brees is taking this one year-to-year to with the Saints, meaning that the team will not be shackled to an aging quarterback who will leave a mountain of dead money on the books once he’s retired. Even though the Saints will have to work around the cap space still committed to Brees when his playing days are over, the continued rise in the salary cap (set at $198.2 million for 2020) means it won’t be as serious a hurdle as it could have been.
And this deal is even more team-friendly than the structure suggests. Brees could have easily earned $30 million or more per year on the open market, but his decision to settle for just $25 million in annual salary presents something of a discount for the Saints. That valuable capital will do a lot to help them retain their own pending free agents as well as sign veteran additions.
All told: it’s as great a deal as Brees and the Saints could hope to agree on at this stage in his career. Brees gives New Orleans its best chance at winning another Super Bowl, and the unique structure and finances of his contract presents much-needed flexibility against a tight salary cap. Here’s hoping the Saints can send Brees out with another championship celebration parade.
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