Saints Front Office Must Heed Their Fans, Ink Drew Brees to Long-Term Deal

The New Orleans Saints' front office should listen to its fans, literally.

According to James Varney of the Times-Picayune, a Saints fan website dedicated to getting Brees paid has emerged:

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Covington lawyer Antonio "Tony" Le Mon has opened a trust fund he hopes will help keep quarterback Drew Brees a New Orleans Saints player. The "Drew Brees Fans Step Up Trust Account," is an irrevocable trust to which Le Mon has already contributed $500.

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Talk about innovation and creativity at its finest; the Saints and Brees have to find common ground sooner than later.

By that token from New Orleans fans, let's take a look at how a long-term deal for Brees really benefits the Saints.

Focus on Defense

With Brees under center the Saints offense would only be as productive as his efficiency. In short, damn good.

The defense last season is what cost New Orleans more than anything, and getting Brees for the long run allows the Saints to focus on strengthening a weakness. Ranking No. 30 against the pass last season, no matter who is orchestrating the Saints' offense in 2012, every opponent will be looking to exploit that area.

As the offseason progresses, the sooner a deal gets done with Brees, the sooner the coaching staff can focus more on fixing the defense. Then, New Orleans also has the 2013 offseason to address other areas of need and build a more complete team.

NFC South Contention

The NFC South is gradually on the rise and is becoming one of the NFL's better divisions from top to bottom.

Right now the Atlanta Falcons are the most complete team as veteran players such as Asante Samuel and Lofa Tatupu give boost to other studs like John Abraham and Brent Grimes. The Falcons offense is also impressively balanced as running back Michael Turner has some time left in the tank.

Tampa Bay had one of the best offseasons in upgrading the offense and defense. The Buccaneers have a No. 1 target in Vincent Jackson for Josh Freeman and a solid two-back set to change the running game's pace.

Defensively, Tampa will be relying on young players, but that only builds experience for the future.

As for Carolina, the Panthers have an explosive offense and a potent defense. Rookie linebacker Luke Kuechly will play a major role, and if the Cats improve against the pass, watch out because Cam Newton's offense will score.

If Brees gets a long-term deal, then all of this can be fended off by New Orleans as the Saints will outscore everyone. No long-term deal and the NFC South will be too much for the Big Easy to handle.

NFC Quarterback Domination

Tom Brady and Peyton Manning are the best quarterbacks the AFC has to offer, but both are on the back end of their careers and don't have as much time left as most current NFC gunslingers.

The NFC North obviously presents Aaron Rodgers and Matthew Stafford in Green Bay and Detroit. The two are among the most efficient in the league and will be competing for the NFC title seemingly every year.

Move to the east as we see two-time Super Bowl MVP Eli Manning, Tony Romo coming off his best season, Michael Vick and rookie Robert Griffin III. Out west we see Alex Smith, and even though he developed late, the 49ers quarterback threw for 299 yards and three touchdowns in San Francisco's playoff win over New Orleans.

Say what you want about Smith, but the man has a promising future.

All of those NFC opponents outside of the division have a reliable quarterback under center, and most are legit Super Bowl contenders. Circle back to the NFC South with Matt Ryan, Newton and Freeman, and the Saints must ink Brees otherwise New Orleans will be lucky to finish near .500.

The NFC has the majority of the league's dominant quarterbacks, and with a vulnerable defense, Brees taking snaps is the only chance for the Big Easy to remain among the elite.

John Rozum on Twitter.