Drew Brees, New Orleans Saints agree to five-year extension

The New Orleans Saints and quarterback Drew Brees finally agreed to contract extension on Wednesday.

The 37-year-old Brees will receive $44.25 million fully guaranteed over the next two years and gets more than the $20 million in 2016, according to ESPN and NFL Network. The extension will be announced as a five-year deal but contains an automatic void to two years.

"I'm humbled and honored, and have been since the day I first set foot here as a New Orleans Saint," Brees told reporters Wednesday at his regularly scheduled press conference. "It's been an incredible journey and I hope to continue that journey for quite a bit longer.

"Both sides are very happy, certainly I'm very happy. I want to play my entire career here. ... This allows me to be here for a bit longer and I'll be here as long as they'll have me."

The deal also includes a no-trade clause and forbids the Saints from using their franchise tag on the quarterback, according to ESPN. By spreading the contract over five years, the Saints reduce Brees' $30 million salary cap hit for 2016, which was the highest for any player in NFL history.

Brees was set to earn $19.75 million in the final season of a five-year, $100 million contract signed in 2012 -- at the time the highest-paid quarterback in NFL history. Without a new deal, the 2017 franchise tag would have had a cap charge of $43.2 million.

Brees had been telling the Saints for months that he would cease negotiations once the season kicks off on Sunday against the Oakland Raiders.

"The thing we're all aligned on is what puts this team in the best position to win and the best position to win a championship," Brees said.

Brees led the NFL in passing for the fourth time in five seasons last year with 4,870 yards in just 15 games played as the Saints went 7-9. He completed 68.3 percent of his 428 passes with 32 touchdowns and 11 interceptions, keeping his average during the lifetime of his current deal with the Saints over 5,000 yards and 37 touchdowns per season. His decade in New Orleans has been the most prolific run of any quarterback in NFL history.

Brees' age may have been working against him when compared to younger star quarterbacks.

Andrew Luck of the Indianapolis Colts and Joe Flacco of the Baltimore Ravens have gotten long-term extensions done this offseason.

Flacco signed for a $22.13 million per year in new money in March, with $44 million guaranteed, and then Luck shattered the mark with $24.6 million per year in new money last month that includes a record $87 million guaranteed.