Troubled Saints And QB Brees Agree To $100M Contract

Some tweets are indecipherable, but there was nothing cryptic about the one Drew Brees tapped out yesterday afternoon.

"Deal is Done!" it began. Then it said, "Love you Who Dat Nation. See you soon!"

In this case, the done deal means that the quarterback of the New Orleans Saints will be paid $40 million dollars to play this season, and $100 million dollars total over the next five years. Brees had said he would not play under the terms of the one year contract that the team could have imposed on him under the NFL's franchise tag, a contract that would have paid him $16.3 million in 2012. Can't blame him for balking, I guess, given the way things turned out.

Anyway, Brees, who had skipped the Saints off-season practices, will return to a team in trouble…though it's fair to say they'd have been in a lot more trouble without him. The Saints have lost defensive captain Jonathan Vilma and head coach Sean Payton, among others, to suspension following the NFL's investigation of the so-called bounty scandal. The team had fallen no little and quite some since winning the Super Bowl behind Brees after the 2009 season, so it is no surprise that New Orleans GM Mickey Loomis called the contract the most important he'd ever negotiated. Loomis, you'll perhaps recall, has also been suspended, though only for the first eight games of next season…meaning that he'll be present to witness $20 million dollars' worth of the entertainment for which his franchise has just paid.

So who's happy about this? Or dat?

Saints fans, certainly.

Drew Brees and those whom he supports, including his charitable foundation.

And probably Peyton Manning, who is no longer the world's most lavishly compensated quarterback. Relieved of the pressure of that designation, Manning, who missed last season after multiple neck surgeries, will probably lead Denver to the Super Bowl. If poetic justice prevails, he'll meet Drew Brees and the Saints there, since paying a quarterback $40 million bucks for the season should entitle the Saints front office to expect no less. Then Manning, second to Brees at accumulating loot, can try to beat him at football