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There’s little doubt that Drew Brees will return to play for the New Orleans Saints in 2020, with the quarterback himself saying that he wants to “run it back,” and Saints brass outlining a hope to get his contract re-upped before free agency kicks off on March 18. But that hasn’t been the case before. Brees was a hot commodity in the 2018 offseason, the last time his contract was up, the Minnesota Vikings were one of his notable suitors, with other teams also trying to recruit him away from New Orleans.
While it took some time for the details to emerge, ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler and Dan Graziano reported that the Arizona Cardinals were one team that made Brees a serious offer: to the tune of $60 million over two years. That would’ve paid out $30 million per year, keeping Brees near the top of the market, but it also would have paired him with a team thin at too many positions, particularly on defense.
Brees declined that offer, wisely; the Cardinals went on to sign Sam Bradford as their replacement for the retired Carson Palmer, drafting Josh Rosen highly. Both Bradford and Rosen were gone a year later, with Kyler Murray selected first overall. That’s a morass Brees was probably right to avoid, even if it would have been fascinating to see him run an offense with weapons like Larry Fitzgerald and David Johnson around him.
ESPN’s report adds that Brees chose the Saints over the Cardinals because he wanted to win another Super Bowl, not maximize his value on the free agent market. That checks out, because he ended up signing a two-year, $50 million extension with the Saints. And the Saints went on to win 13 games in back-to-back seasons. Hopefully he can return for one more ride and finally win that second Super Bowl title.
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