Drew Brees' contract situation continues to hover over the New Orleans Saints as the quarterback enters the final year of his deal.
In the locker room, however, the players aren't fretting about how much their leader gets paid.
"Nobody deserves to be paid and to be compensated more than him," right tackle Zach Strieftold SiriusXM NFL Radio on Sunday. "No one puts in more time. Nobody is more important to this team and this locker room. To us, as players, there's nobody that we feel is more important to take care of than that guy. That's how I certainly feel. Drew's contract will get done. Obviously with a guy that valuable, and that expensive that contract takes time. But I would never blame a guy coming or going on Drew."
Strief noted that part of what makes Brees so good, and so integral to the Saints, is his consistency. Calling Brees a "quarterbacking robot," Strief noted that he knows exactly where and how long Brees will be in the pocket on a given play, at what point he'll climb the pocket and where he'll move -- the consistency is a boon for the blockers. Even off the field, the quarterback's consistency is a rock for the Saints.
"I can tell you when Drew is going to be in the tight ends room on a Thursday during the season, what time he's going to be there," Strief said. "After practice on a given day, where he's going to be and what time. It's amazing. I mean, that guy, he is like a quarterbacking robot. And you know exactly what you're getting out of him and as a lineman, that's the best thing you can ask for, to know exactly what you're going to get out of him."
Brees is set to count $30 million against the salary cap in 2016 and talks between the quarterback and Saints have been intermittent all offseason. Brees has said he'd like a deal done before the season, but without an actual deadline to spur a deal, negotiations for the 37-year-old quarterback could drag into 2017.
