Saints Looking to Sign Drew Brees Before Start of Free Agency

The New Orleans Saints are looking to get Drew Brees signed before the start of the 2020 league year. Team Executive Vice President/General Manager Mickey Loomis spoke to reporters at the NFL Scouting Combine on Thursday, who said he hopes to get a deal done before free agency begins on March 18. Brees' contract expires on that day and both sides have expressed mutual interest.

"We certainly want to have that done before the league year begins," Executive Vice Mickey Loomis said via the team's official website. "Whether that's first or not (in terms of signing free agents), I don't think that matters. But we definitely have a goal of having that done before the league year begins."

Earlier this month, Brees went to Instagram to announce he was returning in 2020 after rumors emerged about him possibly retiring.

"My feelings about the 2020 season!" Brees wrote in an Instagram post with a picture of mountains. "I look forward to the grind and the journey, for the reward at the end will be worth it!!! Love you #WhoDatNation. Let's make another run at it!"

In January, Brees said he would play for the Saints this fall, but at that time he wasn't sure if he was going to play this fall.

"I have never been in the situation where I was mulling over the thought of [returning]," Brees said to NFL Network's Jane Slater during the Pro Bowl. "To me, each one of these contracts, I don't know how many it's been with the Saints, I've played with them 14 years, it's not a matter of if it gets done, it's when. At this stage of my career, it's not a given that I'm coming back every year, but when that time comes, I'll always be a Saint."

"I wanted to give it at least a few weeks, months, postseason, just to take a deep breath and decompress a little bit and get some time with the family and then just reassess," Brees continued.

Brees missed five games last year due to an injured thumb, but he still was able to lead the Saints to an NFC South title with a 13-3 record. He's the NFL's all-time leader in passing yards with 77,416 and he's the all-time leader in passing touchdowns with 547.