Drew Brees, Saints rework contract to save almost $24M in cap space

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Multiple reports on Friday evening shared that Drew Brees and the New Orleans Saints agreed to a renegotiated contract to create nearly $24 million in spending room against the 2021 salary cap, though the exact mechanism the Saints used to pull this off hasn’t yet been made official. Over The Cap’s Jason Fitzgerald first reported the news, which was confirmed by NewOrleans.Football’s Nick Underhill and NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero.

The most likely scenario is Brees taking a pay cut to the veteran’s minimum salary of about $1.075 million, creating $23.925 million in savings. The Saints would then be left with just $23 million on the books for Brees from previous contract restructures, which they can cut in half by designating him a post-June 1st cut after his expected retirement (resulting in cap hits of $11.5 million in 2021 and 2022). Brees was due to count north of $36 million against the cap — now, he’s erased as much of it as possible, likely on his way out the door.

It’s a big first step towards chipping away at the $100 million (or so) New Orleans is currently above the projected 2021 salary cap. The NFL hasn’t yet established a spending limit for 2021, though the latest reports suggest it will be higher than the $175 million floor the league and players union agreed to in light of revenue lost to the COVID-19 pandemic. Having more resources to work with will be crucial for the Saints, with or without Brees.