Saints GM: Brees wanted deal that gave us 'opportunity to improve our roster'

Drew Brees agreed to a two-year contract worth roughly $50 million to re-sign with the New Orleans Saints last week, and his general manager was grateful the veteran quarterback gave up a pay raise to help the team.

"We needed to know what Drew was going to count on our (salary) cap this year, what resources are we using, because then that gives us the ability to do some other things," GM Mickey Loomis said Friday on the "New Orleans Saints Podcast." "To Drew's credit, his No. 1 goal was to make sure we had an opportunity to improve our roster, keep our roster together, and be as competitive as we can be."

Brees will earn an average annual value of $25 million on his new deal, a figure that ranks outside the top 10 at his position. The 41-year-old's previous contract extension came in 2018 and was also worth $50 million over two years. Like his new deal, it compared favorably to those of other top players at his position.

"I'm certainly appreciative of how he's handled that contract the last couple times," added Loomis. "Because again, the most important thing to him is that we have a competitive team."

Coming off a 13-3 campaign, the Saints have made a handful of impact moves thus far this offseason, including signing wideout Emmanuel Sanders, reuniting with versatile safety Malcolm Jenkins, and re-signing guard Andrus Peat. The team currently ranks near the bottom of the league with roughly $9 million in salary-cap space following the first wave of free agency, according to Over The Cap.

Brees, the league's all-time leader in passing yards and passing touchdowns, is set to embark on his 15th campaign in New Orleans and 20th NFL season overall.