Brees Optimistic About Deal, Two Sides $10 Million Apart

 New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees made an appearance on ESPN's ESPY awards Wednesday night, and had a few things to say about his current contract standoff.

"I think I've been around this league long enough to understand how this works at times. In a lot of cases, it does go down to the wire, and you need a stopping point in order to bring everyone together and make sure it can get done," explained Brees on the television broadcast. "That stopping point is Monday, so let's hope we get something done by then."

Drew gave the usual positive vibe in front of the cameras that fans have grown to love.

"I'm an eternal optimist, so I'm still very confident a deal will get done by Monday," Brees said.

Brees also took home an ESPY (pictured left) for Record-Breaking Performance of the Year. He was also a nominee for Best NFL Player. If the Saints want to get a deal done with their recording breaking captain, they'll need to close a big gap in their current negotiations.

According to an Associated Press report, the Saints and Brees are about $10 million apart in the guaranteed portion of the contract. New Orleans has reportedly offered Brees a contract with the highest amount of guaranteed money in NFL history, in addition to the highest annual salary. However, the sticking point appears to be how much of that $100 million is guranteed.