We can now add New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees to the list of players who believe Thursday Night Football is the devil.
In a game that saw plenty — as in, too many — players on the Saints go down with injury, Drew Brees used his postgame platform to discuss what he believes to be a huge issue when playing games on short rest. Or, more bluntly put, if he believes Thursday Night Football played a factor in the rash of injuries.
“It’s 100 percent a product of playing on Thursday night,” Brees said. “Do you understand what guys’ bodies go through in a game? And then to have to turn around four days later and to play? Look at the injury studies, they’re off the charts. They’re off the charts. So is this smart as it pertains to guys’ health and safety? No, absolutely not.”
“I can sit here and tell you that no player likes putting himself at risk on four days’ rest to come and put their bodies through what they put them through in a game,” Brees said. “So you hope that it’s addressed [this offseason], you hope that it’s talked about, and you hope that something is done about it.
“When you see guys go down, when you lose guys for what you think is unnecessary just because you put ’em at a much higher risk in such a quick turnaround, that gets you upset.”
With how much money the NFL makes off Thursday Night Football, it will take a monumental stance by the players come the next CBA negotiations to get the league to remove it from the schedule.
That doesn't, however, make Brees wrong.
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