The New Orleans Saints have started offseason workouts and Drew Brees is missing.
The star quarterback is skipping the sessions in protest of stalled contract extension talks with the club. Brees said he still wants to finish his career in New Orleans and has a plan to be as prepared as possible when he does eventually report.
“If that means missing minicamp and training camp, I will be as ready as can possibly be,” Brees said. “There’s no way you can simulate those things anywhere else other than being on the field with your team, but I have a plan, so I’ll execute that plan as I need to.”
The Saints have given no indications they will resign Brees to a long-term deal that could rival that of Peyton Manning’s $96 million deal in Denver and make him one of the game’s highest paid players.
New Orleans has most of the top players back from an offence that set numerous records last season, when Brees passed for a single-season record 5,474 yards, smashing Dan Marino’s mark of 5,084, which had stood since 1984.
The Saints have placed the exclusive franchise tag on Brees, meaning he won’t be playing anywhere else next season. However, Brees has said he has no intention of playing under a one-year franchise tag that does not give him any long-term security.
“I feel like our position is very reasonable and certainly appropriate for the situation that I’m in, which is having played the full extent of my (previous) six-year contract. I knew exactly what I was signing up for and over the last few years I have not said a peep about wanting a new contract or not being happy with my current contract.
“Certainly, I took on a lot of risk last year by playing the last year of my contract without anything guaranteed for the future.”
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