Sean Payton shares his take on Drew Brees’ future in New Orleans

New Orleans Saints coach Sean Payton can’t say if Drew Brees will return to play quarterback in 2020, but he’s not expecting a resignation.

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There’s an elephant in the room, and New Orleans Saints coach Sean Payton is aware of it. Payton held his end-of-year press conference on Tuesday, and took some time to acknowledge a complicated Saints quarterback situation.

Drew Brees and Teddy Bridgewater will be unrestricted free agents in March. Taysom Hill is going to be a restricted free agent. Payton admitted that, in a perfect world, all three quarterbacks would be retained in 2020. But that may not be a realistic situation, and he knows there’s a real chance one or two of his passers won’t return next season.

Brees is the biggest domino. The future Hall of Fame inductee played well after returning from an early-season hand injury, but his struggles in the playoffs loss to the Minnesota Vikings were disquieting. It’s anyone’s guess whether Brees will retire, but Payton passed on the opportunity to try and read his quarterback’s mind. All he can do is guess.

“I can’t speak for him, but I think he wants to play more,” Payton said during his end-of-year conference call. “We just saw him play at a very high level.”

While Brees hasn’t given Payton a firm indication either way, the Saints coach isn’t expecting a letter of resignation or anything dramatic: “I don’t anticipate this grandiose meeting and phone call soon.”

This is a decision Brees will want to take some time to decide. He’s spoken before about how this stage of his career is being played on borrowed time, and that his next pass could be his last. He and the Saints are acutely aware that their Super Bowl window is narrowing. Whenever he does decide what he’ll be doing next year, the Saints will have to move quickly not just on his contract, but deals with Hill and Bridgewater. It’s shaping up to be another eventful Saints offseason.

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Would the Saints use the franchise tag to keep Teddy Bridgewater?

New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees as a clause against it in his contract, but could they use the franchise tag on Teddy Bridgewater?

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Few teams have a quarterback situation as complicated as the New Orleans Saints face in 2020. All three rostered passers are going to be free agents — Drew Brees and Teddy Bridgewater are scheduled to test the open market, while the team will likely have right-of-first-refusal status for Taysom Hill. No matter what happens, Brees and Bridgewater have a combined $25.3 million in dead money on the books for 2020, though that can could be kicked further down the road with new deals.

Brees, who turns 41 next week, has said he’ll continue to take things year-to-year. It’s a safe bet that the’ll return given how well he played in 2019 (even if Minnesota Vikings coach Mike Zimmer out-dueled him and Sean Payton in the playoffs), but it’s not a completely-sure thing.

It’s easy to argue that Bridgewater should return to New Orleans and continue to wait it out, having proven himself a worthy heir-apparent when Brees missed five games with a hand injury. But asking a young player to ride the pine for two years is easier said than done, and Bridgewater shouldn’t lack for options in free agency.

Teams that could part ways with incumbent quarterbacks include the New England Patriots, Los Angeles Chargers, Las Vegas Raiders, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and Carolina Panthers. Neither Tom Brady nor Philip Rivers have committed to returning to the Patriots and Chargers, while Raiders coach Jon Gruden is famously fickle with his quarterbacks. Buccaneers coach Bruce Arians publicly vented frustration with Jameis Winston, while new Panthers coach Matt Rhule may want to start fresh after Cam Newton missed more than a year with injuries.

Other teams like the Chicago Bears and Jacksonville Jaguars are determined to go down with the ship, anchoring themselves to bad starters like Mitchell Trubisky and Nick Foles (though Gardner Minshew gives Jaguars coach Doug Marrone a life-line). The Cincinnati Bengals and Miami Dolphins are targeting quarterbacks in the draft, while the Tennessee Titans may have caught lightning in a bottle with Ryan Tannehill.

So Bridgewater should have more suitors than he heard from last offseason, when the only serious offer came from the Dolphins. And Miami simply wanted him to be a sacrificial lion in their tanked 2019 campaign; Ryan Fitzpatrick played that role instead. It would be a serious stunner if the Saints can recruit Bridgewater into sticking around another year as a backup.

Even more unlikely is their option to use the franchise tag. It would guarantee Bridgewater more than $24 million in 2020 (official amounts are not yet set by the league office) but would keep him off the open market, and guarantee the Saints significant draft capital (two first-round picks) if another team tried to sign him. They’re already fairly cash-strapped, so this isn’t realistic.

An alternative could be the transition tag, which would fully-guarantee something north of $22 million. It offers the right of first refusal, allowing Bridgewater to negotiate a contract with another team which the Saints could opt to match. The downside is the Saints are left with no compensation should he leave. Even though the NFL is a business first and foremost, tagging Bridgewater to force him to remain with the Saints would be a huge reversal from the positive relationship he’s built with the team since they first traded for him. And for what it’s worth, Brees has a no-tag clause in his contract.

So neither of these options feel like routes New Orleans wants to take. The best situation for the team could be a repeat of the 2019 configuration; Brees and Bridgewater both return at depressed salaries (Brees drawing $20 million-plus as a starter, and Bridgewater getting around $8 million as a backup) while Hill plays on a low-cost restricted free agent tender. But that may not be a realistic expectation considering where each player’s career arc is trending.

Uncomfortable as it may be, fans will have to remain patient and let this process play out. We won’t know whether Brees or Bridgewater sign contract extensions until the free agent signing period is here, but the tag deadline (March 10, at 3 p.m. CT) is a date to circle on the calendar. Hopefully they work out something more amicable.

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4 potential Saints salary cap casualties for the 2020 offseason

New Orleans Saints veterans like Janoris Jenkins, Patrick Robinson, Nick Easton, and Mario Edwards could be salary cap casualties in 2020.

There’s no getting around it: the 2020 offseason will be difficult for the New Orleans Saints. They must navigate contract decisions with a number of important free agents, including all three quarterbacks (Drew Brees and Teddy Bridgewater will be unrestricted free agents, while Taysom Hill is designated with restricted status). With the 2020 salary cap expected to settle somewhere around $200 million, the Saints will have between $16 and $20 million to spend. That won’t be enough to keep everyone.

Some restructures should be expected; it’s a staple of the playbook built by Saints general manager Mickey Loomis and salary cap specialist Khai Hartley. But they’ll also have to consider cutting veteran players to curb costs. Here are four potential Saints salary cap casualties.

Janoris Jenkins

Potential savings: $11.25 million

The Saints claimed Jenkins off of waivers in December, inheriting the final year of his New York Giants contract in the process. That agreement carries with it a 2020 salary cap hit of $11.25 million, none of which is guaranteed — yet. Jenkins will be due a $1 million roster bonus on March 16, which would be fully-guaranteed. So the Saints could theoretically release Jenkins before that date and leave no dead money behind; doing so afterwards would leave $1 million in dead money.

That said, cutting Jenkins doesn’t make sense, but it could benefit him and the Saints to add a year or two onto his current deal to spread out the salary cap hits. He played so well in his two starts for New Orleans (ending the Week 17 game Carolina Panthers with an interception, and erasing Stefon Diggs in the the wild-card loss to the Minnesota Vikings) that he should definitely be a part of their plans for 2020.

Keeping Jenkins is even more sensible when you consider Saints cornerbacks Eli Apple and P.J. Williams will test free agency in a few months. Ironically, Apple and Jenkins were once teammates with the Giants — and the Saints declined Apple’s fifth-year option, which would have guaranteed him about $13.6 million for the 2020 season. Instead, Jenkins has taken his starting job.

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Kiko Alonso suffered torn ACL in wild-card round loss to Vikings

The New Orleans Saints lost starting linebacker Kiko Alonso to a torn ACL in their wild-card round defeat to the Minnesota Vikings.

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New Orleans Saints linebacker Kiko Alonso received tough news on Monday, learning that he suffered a torn ACL in his right knee during Sunday’s loss to the Minnesota Vikings. It’s the third ACL tear for Alonso in his career, following previous injuries in 2014 and 2015. NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero first reported the injury news, which was confirmed by Nola.com’s Amie Just.

This is a big blow for Alonso, 29, who is projected to start at linebacker next season. It’s unclear who plays where — starting weakside linebacker Demario Davis is returning, as is versatile backup Craig Robertson. Alonso replaced former middle linebacker Alex Anzalone in the starting lineup when the Saints acquired him in a trade with the Miami Dolphins, and Anzalone will be entering a contract year coming off of season-ending shoulder surgery. Starting strongside linebacker A.J. Klein’s contract will expire in March. Rookie backup Kaden Elliss also ended his year with a torn ACL back in September.

In other words: Davis is the only healthy starting linebacker the Saints have slotted in for 2020. The good news is that the Saints run so deep at defensive back that they often play just two linebackers at a time, so these are hits they can absorb. The position shouldn’t be seen as a glaring need given deficiencies at other spots on the roster, but the Saints could look to add more-durable options in free agency or through the 2020 NFL Draft. It’s just disappointing to see Alonso go into the offseason like this after he played so well during his first year in New Orleans.

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What Eddie Jackson’s extension means for Jamal Adams

Eddie Jackson just became the highest-paid safety in the league, which sets a new bar for Jamal Adams’ contract negotiations with the Jets.

The market for safeties just went up, and it will directly affect Jamal Adams’ potential contract extension with the Jets.

Chicago Bears free safety Eddie Jackson became the highest-paid player at the position after signing a four-year, $58.4 million extension Friday that includes $33 million in guaranteed money, according to his agency. His contract will pay him $14.6 million annually, which eclipses the previous league-high of $14.1 million annually set by Titans safety Kevin Byard in 2019.

That $14.6 million average yearly salary number becomes the new floor for Adams’ contract negotiations, which could already be in progress following the safety’s second-consecutive Pro Bowl season and his first All-Pro selection. The Jets should be prepared to offer Adams an extension that surpasses Jackson’s average yearly salary as well as the $44 million in guaranteed money that the Redskins and safety Landon Collins agreed to during the 2019 offseason.

It would be a mega-deal for a safety, but it’s worth it for a multi-dimensional defensive back coming off arguably the best season in his three-year career. Though Adams finished with 40 fewer tackles in 2019, he became a pass-rushing fiend under Gregg Williams with 6.5 sacks (second on the team) and 13 quarterback hits (tied for first on the team). Adams was a terror all over the field and earned his second-consecutive team MVP award.

There is a chance, though, that Adams won’t even be around long enough to sign an extension with the Jets. General manager Joe Douglas took calls for Adams at the 2019 trade deadline, which irked the star safety and clouded his future with the team. There’s a chance those talks surface once again this offseason, right in the midst of Adams’ potential negotiations for a new deal.

Though Douglas took calls for Adams in October, he told reporters during his Dec. 31 press conference he’s had great conversations with Adams since then and acknowledged what Adams means to the team both on and off the field.

“As all of you know, Jamal is an amazing player,” Douglas said. “We saw what he did all year, but really when we deployed him, he was such a factor as a pass rusher around the box. He did so many good things. He’s a special guy.”

Douglas wouldn’t go into details about the potential for an Adams extension, though, choosing instead to offer generic answers about how the team will go about evaluating players and contracts this offseason.

“We’re just starting our process,” Douglas said. “We’re going to get in with the coaching staff. That’s really the start of our entire process as far as talking about each player, each contract and what we’re going to do moving forward.”

These quotes came three days before Jackson’s deal, and the way Douglas negotiates will change drastically considering the new bar set by Jackson and the Bears. Now that the bar has been raised by $500,000, Douglas and the Jets will need to decide soon if Adams is worth the money. Adams will make only $3.5 million in 2020, the final year of his rookie deal. If the Jets exercise his fifth-year option by May 20, 2020, he’d make around $11.3 million in 2021.

The smart play is to pay Adams now before the floor continues to rise. There are a couple of other safeties looking for new contracts in the next year or so that could affect Adams’ next contract. Jackson set the new standard, but Adams will surpass it no matter where he plays in 2020.

WATCH: Brady, Belichick focused on the Titans, not the future

Could Tom Brady be playing his final game with the Patriots this weekend?

The more things change, the more they stay the same in New England on game week.

Tom Brady is in the final season under his current contract with the Patriots (12-4), it’s been a mediocre year of play for the quarterback otherwise known as the GOAT. The reigning Super Bowl Champs dropped their regular-season finale to the Dolphins (5-11) and they are now a part of Wild Card weekend for the first time in a decade.

For Bill Belichick and TB 12, there is nothing at all different about the emotions heading into Saturday’s game at Gillette Stadium.

Thursday, reporters asked the appropriate questions about the circumstances surrounding Brady’s contract status in light of the team’s recent play and the win-or-be-done nature of the playoffs.

“I’m not much for nostalgia,” Brady said. “I’m just pretty focused on what I need to do and this week has felt like pretty much every other week for the past 20 years.”

Belichick’s version of an answer to a similar question was standard for the coach and equally lacking in emotion.

“Yeah, we’re focused on the Titans,” Belichick said. “That’s really … that’s all I’m focused on. So we’ll do everything we can to get ready to go and play the best game we can play Saturday night.”

The head coach only stumbled in starting to call the game day “Sunday,” but of course he never flinched or seemed to acknowledge the situation. Obviously, if the team does stay locked in and defeats the Titans (9-7), Brady will have at least one more game with the franchise anyway.

The Pats can’t place the franchise tag on their QB by the rules written in his contract but there is the time between the end of the season and March to negotiate something if it’s what the player and team want without Brady becoming a free agent for the first time in his career.

But just in case, watch the Pats host the Titans Saturday night at 8:15 p.m. ET. It could be Brady’s last game with the dynasty.

WATCH: Cowboys still haven’t made announcement on Jason Garrett’s future

The Cowboys and their head coach are parting ways as Jason Garrett’s contract is set to expire on Jan. 14.

The Cowboys are reportedly parting ways with head coach Jason Garrett, whose contract is set to expire on January 14th, but the organization still hasn’t formally announced its decision.

The team’s official website ran an article Friday headlined, “As week concludes, still no news on staff,” which acknowledged Friday’s reports and reiterated twice that the team has not made any formal announcement.

ESPN reported Thursday night that Garrett, “failed to meet the established criteria for his return,” following the conversations last February which resulted in Garrett coaching in the final season of his contract without an extension.

Dallas owner Jerry Jones challenged the coach to earn his keep this season in order to stay in the position. The expectation was “to take the next step, which everybody interpreted as an NFC Championship game at minimum,” according to Ed Werder’s report.

The Cowboys finished this season 8-8 (Garrett’s fourth .500 career season), missing the playoffs.

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Tag: contract