We learned yesterday that Drew Brees and the Saints have not discussed a new contract in the last three months, and Brees is therefore still on track to become an unrestricted free agent at the end of the 2016 season (for which he currently carries a $30MM cap hit). Mike Triplett of ESPN.com believes both sides are being unduly stubborn, that they should be more eager to get something done, and that this past week–the last week before the start of training camp–would have been the perfect time for team and player to reach an accord assuring that Brees would remain in New Orleans for the rest of his career.
Of course, Triplett also maintains that Brees and the Saints could have tried harder to get this deal done prior to the start of free agency, when a reduction of Bress’ $30MM cap number would have been especially welcome. Brees has set the start of the regular season as his deadline for working out a new contract, and while Triplett understands the Saints’ hesitancy to hand out another mega-deal–after all, Brees is not getting any younger, and he has battled a series of nagging injuries in the past two years–he still thinks the future Hall-of-Famer is a safe bet to continue performing at a high level. Triplett does believe, however, that Brees should be willing to leave a little money on the table if that’s what it takes to get him a little extra security now and give the team a better chance to make one last championship run before he calls it a career.
Now let’s round up some more Saints-related news:
- A federal judge has given Saints owner Tom Benson an additional 30 days to replace at least some of the team shares that he attempted to pull from his daughter and grandchildren with equitable assets, according to Greg LaRose of The Times-Picayune. Benson had agreed to enter into negotiations back in June, just three days before he was scheduled to go to trial with trustees who blocked his attempt to remove stock in the teams. Once that matter is resolved, the NFL will still need to approve the settlement regarding team ownership.
- Saints cornerback Keenan Lewis, who missed the majority of the 2015 season with a trio of injuries, says he will be ready for the regular-season opener, as Josh Katzenstein of The Times-Picayune writes. His return will be a welcome one for the Saints, who will pair him with Delvin Breaux to form a fairly solid starting duo outside the hash marks.
- One thing that would help the secondary, of course, is a better pass rush, and Nick Underhill of The New Orleans Advocate explores some of the Saints’ options in that regard.