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Saints quarterback Drew Brees recently applied a deadline for extending his contract, which currently is entering its final year. Once the regular season starts, Brees won’t be interested in talking.

His head coach agrees with that approach.

“Just having seen the interview and his comments, they totally make sense,” Sean Payton said on Friday’s PFT Live on NBC Sports Radio. “It was the case [five] years back. You don’t want to be, A, as team or, B, as a player focusing on player contracts right during the middle of the season. . . . I wouldn’t say that there hasn’t been a sense of urgency with [G.M.] Mickey [Loomis] and [agent] Tom [Condon]. Those guys are the ones that are in contact and are the ones that are doing it. . . . I just know how Drew is and his focus and his ability to work and concentrate on the task at hand that won’t be altered, and that’s a strength of his.”

The strength of the final year of Brees’ contract becomes a potential weakness for the team, if the deal isn’t done before Week One. Come 2017, his $30 million cap number for 2016 becomes a $43.2 million franchise tender. Which makes it very unlikely that the franchise tag would be used again on Brees, like it was in 2012.

Many will say it’s far more likely that the two sides will work something out long before it’s time to use the tag. Of course, many also thought the deal would be done before Brees’ $30 million cap figure hit the books on March 9.