New Orleans Saints could franchise tag Drew Brees by Monday

It’s not that the New Orleans Saints and quarterback Drew Brees don’t want to get a long term deal in place, in fact quite the opposite, as both are anxious to secure his future with the team and ensure he plays out the rest of his career as a Saint.

Logistics.

The hold up seems to be how to structure the mega contract in the most cap friendly way — how much does Brees get and when — there are multiple factors to consider including how much per season, roster, and workout bonuses.

Once the finite details are solved, without question, Drew Brees will be with the New Orleans Saints for life.

It’s asinine to think that this would not be the case.

Now with the March 5th deadline looming for NFL teams to place the franchise tag on their best players, Brees long term deal cold be placed on hold for the 2012 season as it’s expected the Saints will franchise him because of the stalled negotiations.

NFL insider Jason La Canfora is reporting that the Saints will almost certainly franchise Brees, citing a source close to the situation, by the leagues deadline.

"Frustration has built with New Orleans quarterback Drew Brees, according to sources with knowledge of the situation, and the Saints will franchise him, short of a rapidly developing long-term deal. The NFL’s franchise-tag deadline is March 5, and free agency begins the following week. As recently as Feb. 23, Brees told The Times-Picayune that he “still was very optimistic” a long-term deal would be reached, but the former Super Bowl MVP is surprised the situation has taken this long. — LaCanfora via NFL.com report"

Using the tag on Brees would drastically change how the Saints approach re-signing other key free agents, for instance guard Carl Nicks and wide receiver Marques Colston.

New Orleans surely wold have liked to have that franchise tag for Carl Nicks, which would have kept him in the team at a relatively low $7.7 million dollar salary.

Colston may get the opportunity to test the free agent market, where he is likely to get a nice offer from a team in desperate need of a play maker at the receiver position.