Drew Brees' comment about Colin Kaepernick surprisingly brought the Saints closer together

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Divisional Round - Tampa Bay Buccaneers v New Orleans Saints

Colin Kaepernick's decision to kneel courted controversy from every corner of the country, including Drew Brees. It even reached outside the sport, reaching people who barely knew Tom Brady's name and plenty who did not. Here's what he had to say and how it brought the Saints closer together.

Kaepernick's kneeling, of course, gave rise to arguments from Florida to Alaska. While lots of raucous shouting matches erupted, it led to conversations in the Saints' locker room.

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What Drew Brees had to say

Drew Brees publicly said that the act of kneeling was disrespectful, according to Clutch Points. With Brees being such a respected and well-known player in the NFL, his comment received plenty of attention. Even NBA superstar LeBron James had something to say on the matter.

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WOW MAN!! 🤦🏾‍♂️. Is it still surprising at this point. Sure isn’t! You literally still don’t understand why Kap was kneeling on one knee?? Has absolute nothing to do with the disrespect of 🇺🇸 and our soldiers(men and women) who keep our land free. My father-in-law was one of those https://t.co/pvUWPmh4s8

— LeBron James (@KingJames) June 3, 2020

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While plenty of people outside of the Saints' organization had something to say, a number of Saints players reached out to him. One player was Brees' teammate Cameron Jordan, one of the defensive ends. According to Jordan, he said the following:

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Man, whatever he was talking about had nothing to do with us winning. It was the opposite of how our locker room addressed it. The moment we heard it, it was instant text messages. Instant calls to Drew. Being your brother’s keeper: this is what I’ve gone through, what I’ve seen, what I’ve been through, how are you not able to relate? It’s that uncomfortable conversation that really led to our locker room being that much closer.

The open dialog that resulted from the statement by Drew Brees led to an uncomfortable conversation. However, at the end of the talk, the Saints' team turned closer to each other.

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The importance of chemistry

Open honesty can go a long way in the NFL, and this was just one example. Open dialogue leads to long-term fixes to issues that can erode a team's chemistry over time across a variety of issues.

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Whether it is something as nationally controversial as kneeling during the national anthem or as inconsequential as an offhand comment taken as an insult, conversations can fix problems.

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Dallas Cowboys v New Orleans Saints

Teams that talk out issues lead to tighter units, leading to tighter execution, leading to showing up in big moments, which leads to wins.

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