It truly doesn’t matter when you get drafted. You just want your foot in the door. In the 2001 NFL Draft, a then-kid from Purdue University named Drew Brees was drafted in the first round with the 32nd pick by the then-San Diego Chargers. After a rotator cuff injury sidelined him in the final game of the 2005 regular season, his future was uncertain. During the 2006 off-season, the New Orleans Saints decided to take a chance and sign the free-agent quarterback that year. The rest after that is history. 15 years ago today, Drew signed with the New Orleans Saints. Today on the anniversary of his signing with the team, he has decided to call it a career and retire.
Drew is one of the greatest quarterbacks I’ve seen step on a football field. There’s no question about it. The preparation he put in, the work, and the desire to be great. For most of his career, durability was always what stood out to me about number nine. It didn’t matter who was around him, you could count on him to be on the field week in and out. I always noticed how he had command and control of his offense I referred to him as the “Steve Nash of the NFL” with how he was able to get the ball to the open guy. Drew is one of the smartest players I’ve also seen. He could fool a defense by thinking he was getting the ball to a specific receiver, then it went to everyone else. It was always the efficiency in which he delivered his passes. He found ways to place the ball only to where his receiver could get it. Drew was always the quarterback to “throw a guy open”. A receiver could be covered and he’d place the ball in a certain area.
Jon Gruden referred to Drew as the “Peyton Manning of the NFC” and often joked the quarterback was the reason why he was relieved of his duties in Tampa Bay as the head coach. Switching gears, the Saints aren’t a perennial contender without number nine. In his first season with the Saints, he led them to a first-round bye and the NFC Championship. In 2009-10, the Saints win the Super Bowl for the first time in franchise history. He’s one of the all-time greats. He retires second all-time in touchdown passes thrown in league history with 571. Get his gold jacket ready for Canton in five years. Well done Drew. It was a pleasure to watch you and analyze your game for years.
