Brees intends to remain with Saints 'as long as they'll have me'

New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees has no plans to go anywhere else this offseason.

The 39-year-old is scheduled to become a free agent in March, and despite being sure to draw interest from other teams on the open market, made it clear he wants to remain with the Saints.

"I'm not in the mood to make anything secretive," Brees said, via ESPN's Mike Triplett. "It's the same way I felt two days ago. It's the same way I felt 12 years ago. That is that I'll be here as long as they'll have me, hopefully."

Brees was named to the Pro Bowl for the 11th time in his career after completing 72 percent of his passes for 4,334 yards and 23 touchdowns against eight interceptions this season.

But the Saints were eliminated by the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday in heartbreaking fashion, and Brees noted that it's too early to seriously consider free agency, even with his next contract looming over the Saints' plans for the 2018 season.

"We're just two days removed, so I really haven't given it a ton of thought - other than, I know where my mindset's been the whole time, and that's that I'll be here," he said.

It's likely Brees will command a deal that will continue to keep him among the league's highest-paid quarterbacks. New Orleans cannot apply the franchise tag on him due to a provision in his contract, however.