There is no doubt that when it comes to former New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees, he is one of the best to ever play the game of football at the position. Even after a long career of playing 20 seasons in the NFL, he did an interview stating that he could have went longer on the recent news that the Saints will be inducting him into their Hall of Fame.
In a conversation with Katherine Terrell of ESPN, Brees gave an update on his health and expressed that there was a great chance he would have been in the league longer. However, it was because of the deterioration of his right arm that prevented the Purdue product from playing “another three years” possibly.
“Honestly, man, if my right arm was still working, I probably would've played another three years,” Brees said. “My body feels great. My body can play, my right arm can't. Unfortunately that's what kind of forced me to step away. And it was time, too.”
Brees talks about wanting to play more football
Brees will be the lone person in the Saints Hall of Fame as there is likely no better person to be first than him who revitalized the franchise and won them a Super Bowl in the 2009-10 season. On top of that, he has amassed a whopping 80,358 passing yards and 571 touchdown throws which both are second all-time to Tom Brady.
“At the end of the day, it's like, how capable … Am I to do the job, right? I would've run QB draws, I would've done whatever. I would've done some veer option. We would've pulled out all the stops. I was ready. Pull out the high school playbook,” Brees said in a joking manner per ESPN about playing in today's NFL.
Brees talks how his career ended with the Saints
After retiring in 2020, there was some thought from Brees to come out of retirement and give one last run, but the shoulder that had work done on his throwing arm was shot. Instead, his last game came in the wild card round that year where the Saints lost to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in a mostly empty stadium due to COVID-19 restrictions which Brees felt “there was a little bit of a lack of closure” because of it.
“Certainly to have it be in a situation like that where you're not able to really be with the fans and celebrate it with all those who are so important, I felt like there was a little bit of a lack of closure,” Brees said. “I try not to think about, like, the glance back in the Dome because I wish it would've been with a packed house. That energy that is so synonymous with the Superdome that I'll always remember and what we always fed off every game day. My image of the Dome is much different than that last one.”
His throwing arm is injured to the point that even when he is throwing the football with his sons, he has to use his left arm. While he touts that he can throw a perfect pass of 30 yards, he knows more is needed if he were to come back to the league.
“I can drop a dime like 30 yards, left-handed,” Brees said. “Unfortunately you need a little bit more than that to compete at this level. I throw left-handed with the boys, with everything. Anything below my shoulder, below the waist, racket sports, golf, that's fine.”
Brees talks about his original injury before debuting for New Orleans
While the success of Brees is immense, he has had an injury history that even went back to his days when he was on the San Diego Chargers. He had a “360-degree tear of the labrum in his right shoulder” which eventually led the Saints to acquire him when other teams, most notably the Miami Dolphins, opted against it since the injury was too severe.
“I really thought my career was over. Five years into it. I really thought I may never play again,” Brees said. “… There came a moment after the surgery where I could've taken the insurance policy. … Here I was facing a career-ending injury and if I never played again, I could collect the insurance policy. And it was a good insurance policy. Point being, when that happens and all the sudden you just get a second chance … You just have so much gratitude in your heart.”
However, Brees would reveal that when he got the surgery to repair the shoulder all those years ago, his doctor warned him that if he keeps playing that down the line, he would not be able to throw anymore. What resulted was 15 more years of an excellent playing career.
“He said, ‘You're on the fast track to a degenerative shoulder. And so at some point this will catch up with you,'” Brees said via ESPN. “All that wear and tear and all the work that was done. … Unfortunately there will be attrition at some point. I hung on as long as I could.”
Brees wants to have a career in football beyond playing
In terms of the future for the former Saints star, there is no question that it is somewhere in football whether it be through broadcasting like he has done with NBC or even coaching where he volunteered for his alma mater at Purdue for a little bit. Either way, his “passion” for the sport is still prevalent as he goes through the bevy of options he has in front of him.
“I have a passion for football,” Brees said. “I still love the game, I love to coach the game, I love to watch the game, I love to analyze the game. And that'll never leave. … You've got to feed the flame somehow. So for me, I worked for NBC for a year, and honestly I had such a good time. It was awesome, the only problem was the travel schedule. … I love the game and I would love to broadcast NFL games at some point.
“… But otherwise, coaching,” Brees continued. “I love coaching my boys, I love coaching high school kids, I love coaching 7-on-7, I love being a mentor for guys, I probably had five NFL quarterbacks reach out to me this offseason just to talk, I love being in that role and I always want to be a resource for the next generation. I feel that's part of our responsibility. We wouldn't be where we are without having those guys along the way, and now that baton is passed to us to be the next generation of mentors for guys that are coming up.”
A celebration for Brees incoming this season
The Saints announced Thursday that Brees will go into their Hall of Fame which the ceremony will happen during the upcoming season in the fall with a date to be determined. In any sense, New Orleans starts their season on Sept. 8 against the Carolina Panthers as they look to improve after a 9-8 record and second place finish in the NFC South.
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