Drew Brees of New Orleans Saints agrees to cut the salary as a sign of retirement

METAIRIE, La. – In the latest signal that Drew Brees is preparing to retire after 20 seasons, the New Orleans Saints quarterback has agreed to cut his 2021 salary from $ 25 million to the veteran minimum of $ 1,075 million, a source confirmed to ESPN on Friday.

The move will free up nearly $ 24 million in salary space for a Saints team expected to start the off season at nearly $ 100 million above the limit.

The agreement was first reported by Over The Cap.

Brees, 42, has not yet announced whether he officially plans to retire. But the move has been widely expected for months. Saints coach Sean Payton said on Wednesday that he expects an announcement about Brees’ future plans within a week or two.

Brees and the Saints would then wait until after June 1 to officially file his retirement papers so that they could spread his remaining salary ceiling over the next two years. Brees would count $ 36.15 million against the cap this season, with another “dead money” hit of $ 11.5 million slated to count toward the 2022 salary cap from previous signing bonuses.

Now, until June 1, he will only count $ 12,225 million against the cap – which would be cut to $ 11.15 million after he officially retired. He would still count $ 11.5 million at next year’s limit in that scenario, for a total of $ 22.65 million in dead money.

When Brees retires, he will go out as the NFL’s all-time leader in career passing yards (80,358) and second of all-time in touchdown passes (571) and completion rate (67.7%).

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