Drew Brees: New Orleans Saints Must Sign Star QB in Wake of Upheld Suspensions

In the wake of the bevy of suspensions for participation in the Bountygate scandal that has rocked the New Orleans Saints this offseason, the team is desperately in need of some positive press. The easiest way to go about generating some would be to get star quarterback Drew Brees inked to the long-term contract extension he's seeking.

The Saints' hopes of seeing the penalties levied against head coach Sean Payton, assistant coach Joe Vitt and general manager Mickey Loomis reduced were dashed Tuesday, as Alex Marvez of FOX Sports reported that the team's appeals of their suspensions were denied by NFL commissioner Roger Goodell.

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The suspension appeals of three key members of the New Orleans Saints for their involvement in a bounty scandal were denied.

The NFL announced Monday that the punishment levied by commissioner Roger Goodell would stand for head coach Sean Payton, general manager Mickey Loomis and assistant head coach/linebackers Joe Vitt.

Payton’s suspension will begin on April 16 and he will be forced to miss the entire 2012 season. The suspensions of Loomis (eight games) and Vitt (six) will begin at the end of the preseason.

The Saints also were fined $500,000 and stripped of 2012 and 2013 second-round draft picks.

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The appeal process may not have worked out the way the team had hoped, but at least now what's done is done and the team can move on to the next order of business, which is getting a new deal done for its record-setting and somewhat disgruntled signal-caller.

Brees, who threw for an NFL-record 5,476 yards last season, was designated the Saints' franchise player this offseason. That move apparently didn't sit too well with the 33 year-old quarterback, and it may cause Brees to skip the beginning of organized team activities, according to Sam Farmer of the Los Angeles Times.

"The New Orleans Saints will open their offseason workouts Monday and won't have their head coach.

They might not have their star quarterback, either.

Asked Tuesday whether he plans to sign his franchise tender so he can be at those workouts, Drew Brees said, "We're continuing to work on a long-term deal."

Asked again whether that means he'll be there Monday, Brees gave an identical answer.

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The 12th-year pro originally made no secret of his displeasure about being saddled with the franchise tag, but Brees' stance has seemingly softened a bit since, and he recently relayed to Ryan Wilson of CBS Sports that he's confident a deal will get done and that the team can weather these stormy seas.

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On March 30, Brees softened his stance, saying "My goal will be and always has been to get a long-term contract with the New Orleans Saints that will keep me here my entire career. I'm going to continue to work toward that."

"Our organization, whenever we're hit with something, any kind of adversity, we have guys that step up and fill the void, take on more responsibility and really thrive," Brees said. "We did that last year, and whatever is thrown at us this year, we'll continue to thrive."

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To this point the 2012 season has been an unmitigated catastrophe for the New Orleans Saints, and the spectre of the "player bounty" scandal and its fallout will likely cast a pall over the team all season long.

That said, I think it's safe to say that the team has filled its controversy quota for this year, so the last thing the Saints need is the possibility of contentious negotiations or a holdout by the face of their franchise hanging over the club.

The New Orleans Saints need that face of the franchise front and center practicing with his teammates, if only to deflect attention from all the unpleasantness behind the scenes. No matter what it takes, Mickey Loomis needs to get a long-term contract extension hammered out with Drew Brees before Loomis' league-mandated, two-month vacation begins.

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