"I think there's a better chance of you or I playing quarterback in the NFL" - NFL analyst skeptical on Drew Brees playing next season
Drew Brees blew the air horn on a quiet Sunday, creating an avalanche of speculation based on his post on social media. In the post, he mentioned he was undecided on what he wanted to do next. He listed several options, including a return to football. Some are taking the post entirely as a joke.
Brees wrote:
"Despite speculation from media about my future this fall, I’m currently undecided. I may work for NBC, I may play football again, I may focus on business and philanthropy, I may train for the pickleball tour, senior golf tour, coach my kids or all of the above. I’ll let you know."
Despite speculation from media about my future this fall, I’m currently undecided. I may work for NBC, I may play football again, I may focus on business and philanthropy, I may train for the pickleball tour, senior golf tour, coach my kids or all of the above. I’ll let you know
Some label parts of Brees' post as a joke, and others as potentially serious. Some are taking the post as a promise of intent to rejoin the NFL. Speaking on Get Up, one NFL analyst explained Brees' post. Dan Graziano laughed at the prospect of the quarterback stepping on the field again.
Graziano said:
"[Brees] equated the possibility of playing football again with the possibility of joining the pickleball tour. Is there even a pickleball tour? So, I wouldn't take it too seriously. This is a guy, who the last time we saw him play was a couple seasons ago, and it wasn't going very well. He didn't play last year."
When Drew Brees says he may play football again does he mean in the NFL? Like starting QB for an NFL team? Like throwing the ball more than 10 yards?
Graziano continued, saying even NFL analysts have a better chance of playing in 2022:
"[Brees] had surgery on his left shoulder, his non-throwing shoulder, but he had surgery within the last couple of months. So you think about a guy at 43 coming off a season where he didn't play and rehabbing an injury of some sort. I think there's a better chance of you or I playing quarterback in the NFL."
Drew Brees in recent years
While the quarterback's deep ball seemed to drop off in his last couple of seasons, his production was above starter quality in the eyes of most. According to Pro Football Reference, Brees had no trouble winning. in his final four seasons, he went 41-13.
From 2016 to 2020, Brees completed at least 70 percent of his passes each season. In his final season, he went 9-3, completed 70.5 percent of his throws, and threw for 24 touchdowns and six interceptions.
Towards the end, availability was arguably his biggest issue. In 2020 and 2021, the quarterback missed over a month's worth of games each season.
In Graziano's eyes, Brees' ability to read a defense and deliver a pass isn't what is keeping him from the NFL. Should Brees return, Graziano's biggest issue would be whether his body could last a full season anymore?
Will the former Saints quarterback pull a "Brett Favre" or "Tom Brady" and return to the gridiron post-retirement?