Saints head coach Sean Payton would prefer to discuss the Oakland Raiders and not Drew Brees' impending contract extension.
"I don't pay attention to the numerous reports we're working on. We got a game," Payton told reporters on a conference call Wednesday. "We got 10,000 things we're working on here so the numerous reports you can speculate on but I'm not in tuned to those."
He added: "Like I said, (Saints GM) Mickey (Loomis) is working closely with Drew and Drew's agent, and when something gets done -- if it gets done -- we'll let you guys know."
According to NFL Network's Mike Garafolo, a pact between Brees and the Saints could get done as soon as Wednesday. Brees wants to circumnavigate a public relations nightmare a few months from now when the Saints could potentially be forced to hand Brees the franchise tag -- which would cost New Orleans $43 million for one season. Brees already counts $30 million against the Saints' cap, or 20 percent of their total spending money for the 2016 season.
NFL Network Insider Ian Rapoport added that Brees and the Saints "have made significant progress on an extension" over the last few days. In addition, the Saints are tinkering with their stable of backups -- the team is set to waive former third-rounder QB Garrett Grayson, according to Rapoport.
Brees has a self-imposed negotiating deadline of Sunday -- the start of the regular season. Brees' hope was that a deal would be done by now or not at all. Lingering questions about a contract during a long season can often cause an irreversible strain, especially on an image-conscious quarterback playing in the autumn of his career. At the moment, New Orleans is just hoping to put the situation behind them. Signing Brees to a few more years is a no-brainer despite his age -- he has averaged 5,127 yards and 39 touchdowns per year since 2011 with no reasonable Plan B in sight. An extension would also help the Saints dig themselves out from underneath a stressful cap situation. They currently have about $2 million worth of spending money.
