Drew Brees will be paid. That much is clear. But his large pay-day must delay at least one more month, as the New Orleans Saints QB related Thursday that he has finished all contract talk until the offseason. Football odds

“You know, I didn’t want it to become a distraction,” Brees told the Times-Picayune. “And from the dialogues we had, going back and forth, there wasn’t any progress really being made. I actually needed to just concentrate on soccer. Football spreads

“It’s been tabled for the moment … And just hopefully will resume when the time is right.”

Brees’ method to his possible deal is markedly different than some of the other high-profile free-agents-to-be. While Chicago Bears running back Matt Forte and Philadelphia Eagles wide receiver DeSean Jackson have been at chances with their various teams for a lot of the season, there hasn’t been any debate in New Orleans, not when the Saints could potentially win their second Super Bowl in a three-year span.

According to The Times-Picayune, Brees’ camp and the Saints stayed far apart in talks up through the end of October — one reason the quarterback decided to end the in-season talks. But the newspaper also reported it’s highly unlikely that Brees, 32, would fail to sign a long term extension with the franchise that he led on to a superb Bowl title in 2009.

It’s predicted that Brees will want to be paid a corresponding figure to what Peyton Manning, Tom Brady and Michael Vick earn in their most recent contracts, which range from $72 million to $100 million in total value according to The Times-Picayune.