Saints fans don’t need to worry about seeing a new quarterback for the next two years as Drew Brees is staying in the “Big Easy.” Ian Rapoport and Jane Slater of NFL Network report that the former Super Bowl MVP will be back with a two-year, $50 million deal.
The #Saints and QB Drew Brees have struck a 2-year deal worth $50M, sources tell me and @SlaterNFL. He gets $27M guaranteed. He’s back and everyone can breathe.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) March 13, 2018
Brees might be 39, but he’s seemingly drinking from the same fountain of youth as Tom Brady has. This past season, when many thought his best years were behind him, had the highest completion percentage of his career (72 percent) and threw for 4,334 yards en route to a Divisional Playoff appearance.
Adam Schefter of ESPN expanded on the Brees deal as it will essentially be a one-year deal with a team option.
Drew Brees’ deal will be written as a two-year deal, but in actuality it will be a one-year deal with a team option after the first year, per source. It also will include a no-trade clause, virtually ensuring that Brees finishes his career in New Orleans.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) March 13, 2018
This free agency season has been unlike any other. With Kirk Cousins looking at fully guaranteed contracts and a high amount of interest for someone who has the stats but none of the accolades, it resulted in other quarterbacks looking to cash in because someone like Brees sees what Cousins is about to make and figure he’s worth more than that.
So while averaging $25 million/year is nothing to sneeze at, Brees probably could’ve gotten more. But instead, Brees took a semblance of a hometown deal and both sides seemingly made the negotiation process as painless as possible to make sure Brees ends his career as a Saint and give the Saints a couple years to find a quarterback.
