Saints quarterback Drew Brees said that becoming the NFL's highest-paid player was never his goal in the negotiation process for a new contract that finally ended Friday with a $100 million deal and $60 million in guarantees. "I can tell you from the start of this negotiation, I never thought once, 'Hey, I want to be the highest-paid guy," Brees said on WWL Radio via the New Orleans Times-Picayune. "It was more about trying to look purely objectively at numbers over the last decade of top-tier quarterbacks, where it's been and where it's going, and trying to do what's fair and justified. ...Certainly when you're talking about the type of contract, the type of money that's out there, I think it's very easy to sit back and say, 'This is ridiculous.' But the fact is, I think the desired result was reached. And I think we're all excited about that. Ecstatic. Now it's time to get to work. This season cannot start fast enough." Source: National Football Post
I'm sure the NFLPA did not pressure him to raise the bar at all. Very few free-agents will ever be able to negotiate from the position of strength that Brees was in. Meanwhile he turned a blind eye to a bounty system which rewarded players for injuring his brother QB's. Bad karma buddy.
it's a give/take situation. yes we gave him a chance when no one else would but through all the record shattering years and SB win he played for $10 million/year and didn't snitch about it..money well spent. the phrase 'pay the man' has never been truer
