New Orleans Saints: The Future of Drew Brees

There’s been quite a lot of fancy passing in New Orleans the past decade thanks to quarterback Drew Brees. But for how much longer?

The numbers are simply mind-boggling. And who knows what the end result will be when the career of quarterback Drew Brees is all said and done.

A second-round pick by the San Diego Chargers in 2001, the former Purdue standout signed with the New Orleans Saints as an unrestricted free agent in 2006. That same year, head coach Sean Payton joined the club and the pairing has been sensational to date.

Counting his years with the Bolts, Brees (60,903) is one of only four quarterbacks in NFL history to throw for 60,000-plus yards. He trails only recently-retired Peyton Manning (71,940) and Pro Football Hall of Famers Brett Favre (71,838) and Dan Marino (61,361) on that list. It’s worth noting that New England’s Tom Brady (58,028) is closing in on that milestone as well.

This past season, Brees threw for an NFL-best 4,870 yards – the sixth time in 10 seasons in the Big Easy that the prolific signal-caller led or tied for the league lead in passing yardage. There have been eight 5,000-yard passing performances in league annals and the Saints’ quarterback owns four of them.

Want more? Only Peyton Manning (539) and Favre (508) have thrown for more scores than Brees – tied with Tom Brady with 428 touchdown passes. He’s been a Super Bowl MVP and an NFL champion, both in 2009.

And yet, what is his future with his current club? He’s in the final year of a five-year, $100 million contract that he signed in 2012. His cap hit this year (via Spotrac) is an amazing $30 million. Is there a renegotiation in sight, or perhaps an extension for the productive field general?

Nov 8, 2015; New Orleans, LA, USA; New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees (9) and head coach Sean Payton celebrate after a touchdown against the Tennessee Titans during the first quarter of a game at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome. Mandatory Credit: Derick E. Hingle-USA TODAY Sports /

“I’ve been through that a few times, so you know that (the contract extension) will happen when it’s supposed to happen,” said the prolific passer this week to Alysha Tsuji of USA TODAY. “There’s so much that goes into an offseason–you’re signing free agents, you’re signing rookies, you’re going through the draft process. Now as we get ready for training camp, I obviously, I see myself in New Orleans for the rest of my career.”

“I feel like I’ve got quite a few good years left,” added Brees. “I got one year left on the contract, but whether you have a one-year contract or a five-year contract, you’ve still got to prove it every year … even if you’re locked into a long-term deal, they can get rid of you at any time, so that’s my mindset…Once the season rolls around, I just want to focus on football.”

That would certainly be the priority. Despite the impressive offensive numbers by this club (the Saints have finished no lower than sixth in the NFL in total offense 10 consecutive years), Payton’s club has finished 7-9 and out of the playoffs three of the past four years.

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The defense has been abysmal for the most part, but who knows what the future of both the quarterback and the head coach is if the Saints suffer through another disappointing season.

Interesting times ahead in the Crescent City indeed.

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