Category: drew brees

Drew Brees’ game-winning touchdown is the Saints Play of the Day

There’s one day to go until the Saints’ season opener, which means Drew Brees’ game-winning 1-yard touchdown is the Play of the Day:

How’s this for your New Orleans Saints Play of the Day? There’s just one day left until the Saints kick off their 2024 regular season, which means Drew Brees’ game-winning 1-yard touchdown run against the Atlanta Falcons in 2018 is today’s deserving highlight.

It was a tough game with the dirty birds, going all the way to overtime. The Saints won the coin toss and Brees took over at the New Orleans 20-yard line. What happened next was classic. Brees conducted a surgical 15-play, 80-yard drive (completing 9 of his 11 passes) going all the way down to Atlanta’s goal line before he popped over the offensive line and thrust the ball into the end zone for a game-winning score. The “Brees leap” became one of No. 9’s signature plays on fourth-and-short and goal-line situations like this one, and he came through again for the game-winning score in overtime against the Saints’ oldest rivals. See it for yourself.

But most Saints fans who caught this game live wouldn’t point to the overtime touchdown as Brees’ most iconic play of the day. That honor belongs to his 7-yard scramble, when Brees put a pair of Falcons defenders in the spin cycle so he could dive into the end zone and help force the game into overtime. You can find that one here.

Either way, both plays went down in the scorebook as touchdown runs, and this was just the second time in Brees’ illustrious career he was credited with  multiple scores on the ground. The last time he achieved that? 2009’s memorable comeback win over the Miami Dolphins, where Brees helped power the team to a 46-34 win after falling into a 24-3 deficit. The Saints never faced that kind of challenge in this 2018 matchup in Atlanta, but that game still featured seven lead changes before Brees put it away in overtime.

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Drew Brees’ record-tying 21-yard TD pass is the Saints Play of the Day

Drew Brees’ record-tying 21-yard touchdown pass against the Colts is the Saints Play of the Day. It was an auspicious performance for No. 9:

We’re down to 21 days until the New Orleans Saints kick off their 2024 regular season, which makes Drew Brees’ record-tying 21-yard touchdown pass our pick for the Saints Play of the Day.

It was an auspicious performance for No. 9 on “Monday Night Football” against the Indianapolis Colts. Brees finished the game by completing 29 of 30 passes, an NFL record for single-game completion percentage (96.7%). But that wasn’t the only record Brees took that night.

Brees also tied (and later broke) Peyton Manning’s record for career touchdown passes. Tre’Quan Smith caught this 21-yard pass to fight through  two Colts defenders and break the plane at the goal line, scoring the record-tier. And he would’ve had the record-breaker later on a 5-yard touchdown pass, but it was called back for an offensive pass interference penalty.

Instead, Brees broke the record on the next drive with a 5-yard pass to tight end Josh Hill, shattering the career record Peyton Manning had set. He finished the game going 29-of-30 for 304 yards with four touchdown passes, without taking a sack or turning the ball over. It was a vintage performance from an all-time great.

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Rashid Shaheed has one of the coolest Drew Brees autographs you’ll ever see

Rashid Shaheed has one of the coolest Drew Brees autographs you’ll ever see. The pair reunited after Shaheed asked for a photo about 15 years ago:

Rashid Shaheed is hardly the first New Orleans Saints player to ask a favor from Drew Brees, but his story is special. Brees was one of several members of the Saints’ Super Bowl XLIV-winning team to visit training camp this week. And when Brees was making the rounds to shake hands and exchange words, Shaheed stopped him with an autograph request — of a photo of themselves.

Shaheed grew up in San Diego, where Brees and his family have spent their summers for years, and their paths happened to cross way back when. Brees was a dad making a grocery run to what appears to be a Costco big-box store, and Shaheed was a schoolchild asking for a photo to show off to his fifth-grade elementary school class. Of course Brees obliged.

A lot has happened in the years since. Brees won the Super Bowl that year, and Shaheed eventually went on to play college football at Weber State before earning a rookie contract with the Saints. He was rewarded with an extension this summer, and now they’ve reunited.

Brees is going into the Saints team Hall of Fame this season and Shaheed is coming off his first Pro Bowl appearance. When Brees visited Saints practice on Tuesday in Irvine, Shaheed brought a printed copy of their photo from 15 years ago, and asked Brees to sign it. How’s that for a unique souvenir?

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Members of the 2009 Super Bowl team visit Saints practice

Drew Brees, Lance Moore, Roman Harper and more players from the 2009 Super Bowl team visited New Orleans Saints training camp on Tuesday:

The New Orleans Saints brought some former Super Bowl champions out to Tuesday’s practice. Drew Brees, Scott Fujita, Roman Harper, Lance Moore and Scott Shanle all visited training camp practice in Irvine.

Rodney Leslie was also a guest Tuesday afternoon. Leslie was drafted by New Orleans in 2004 and made his way back in 2009. He played one game in the Super Bowl season before going on injured reserve.

There was a cool shot posted on the Saints social media page of Harper, Moore and Fujita chatting with former teammate Jahri Evans.

Evans was an integral part of the Saints offensive line. He along with Carl Nicks helped keep the middle of the pocket clean for Brees for multiple years. Evans is now an assistant offensive line coach for the Saints.

Brees recently advocated for a higher usage of Taysom Hill at quarterback, and the two took some time to catch up after practice.

Having players from the Super Bowl era was a welcome addition at practice. Drew Brees is Drew Brees, and Lance Moore has spent time covering the team with Boot Krewe Media recently. As individuals, these players are beloved among fans and still highly respected among players.

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Drew Brees believes he’s found how many snaps Taysom Hill should play at QB

Drew Brees is in disbelief Taysom Hill isn’t playing more snaps at quarterback, but he says that shouldn’t come at a detriment to Derek Carr:

New Orleans Saints legend Drew Brees believes getting Taysom Hill more snaps at quarterback should be a point of emphasis this year. But he made it clear he isn’t advocating for a battle with Derek Carr.

“I don’t know why we haven’t lived in a world where Taysom Hill is getting 10 to 12 snaps a game at quarterback,” Brees told WWL Radio. Hill is a jack of all trades and will move around the field every game. He’s played quarterback, tight end, fullback, wide receiver, and lined up in the slot while handling a couple of different jobs on special teams. Of all of the positions he played last year, Hill lined up at quarterback the second-most.

Hill played in 16 games but only played double-digits snaps at quarterback in five of them. The Saints were 3-2 in those matchups.

Brees argued that “some of our most successful plays, consistently, are when Taysom Hill is at quarterback.” The eye test gives credence to the statement. Running QB power with Hill seems predictable, but it was arguably their most effective play over the last two years. But he averaged just 6.8 snaps per game at quarterback last season, down from 9.3 the year before.

The numbers support that theory. Pro Football Reference’s Success Rate stat defines it as “a play that gains at least 40% of yards required on 1st down, 60% of yards required on 2nd down, and 100% on 3rd or 4th down.” Hill had a success rate of 64.2% on run plays and 46.2% on passing plays last season.  He’ll be asked to run more than he throws in Klint Kubiak’s offense, so there’s more value placed in his rushing success rate. Brees pointed to that value in making his argument. We’ll see if Kubiak agrees.

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Broncos sent QB to work with former Saints signal-caller Drew Brees this offseason

The Denver Broncos sent one of their quarterbacks to work with Drew Brees over the summer — and it wasn’t Bo Nix:

Newly-drafted Denver Broncos quarterback Bo Nix bears some distant connection to the New Orleans Saints, between the fact Sean Payton is his head coach and the fact he’s drawn some comparison to Drew Brees.

But he’s not the only signal-caller on the team that has that, even when it comes to the latter. Over the offseason, the Broncos sent former Auburn quarterback Jarrett Stidham to work with Brees. Brees has mentored other passers around the league, including Derek Carr, and the future Hall of Famer is a strong resource to pull from.

During a recent episode of The Athletic’s “Scoop City” podcast with Dianna Russini, Chase Daniel (a former Saints backup) shared that Stidham trained with Brees in California this summer.

“He was actually in San Diego with Drew Brees working out,” Daniel said. “The Broncos sent him out there to sort of tap into Brees’ mind about the offense, about his routine. And he wanted to be out here, too.”

Stidham took part in a passing session and a film session with the former NFL legend, spending time “picking his brain.” Stidham will look to reap the benefits of that visit throughout training camp as he battles it out with Nix after spending a year in Payton’s offense. The experience could give him an edge, but at the same time, Nix’s pure talent and higher ceiling could see Stidham take the backseat.

And if Nix spent any time with Brees the way that Stidham did, that union never hit the news.

Stidham saw action in five games during the 2023 season, completing 40 of his 66 passing attempts for 496 yards with 2 touchdowns and 1 interception.

It will be interesting to see how things shake out as the preseason gets underway when the Broncos face the Indianapolis Colts on the road on Sunday, Aug. 11 at noon CT.

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Drew Brees chosen for ESPN’s list of the top 25 NFL players of the 21st century

Drew Brees was chosen for ESPN’s list of the top 25 NFL players of the 21st century, alongside several quarterbacks he beat to win a Super Bowl. He’ll soon join them in the Hall of Fame:

There aren’t many NFL players who accomplished as much as Drew Brees while still feeling like an underappreciated talent. The former New Orleans Saints quarterback was chosen for ESPN’s list of the top 25 NFL players of the 21st century, and his credentials stand apart even in a great era favoring modern passing offenses.

Here’s why ESPN’s NFL Nation reporter Katherine Terrell argues Brees belongs on the list at No. 15 overall:

Key accomplishments: 13-time Pro Bowler, one-time first-team All-Pro, seven-time NFL passing yards leader, four-time NFL passing TDs leader, two-time Offensive POY, Super Bowl XLIV MVP

While Brees’ command of the two-minute drill became famous, he also was renowned for his accuracy with the ball — something that only got better with age. Brees completed 67.7% of his passes, which is second behind Joe Burrow on the all-time list. Brees holds six of the top 10 spots for single-season completion percentage, setting four of those marks between the ages of 38 and 41. Teammates and coaches have attributed that success over the years to multiple factors, including Brees’ ability to read a defense and quickly get the ball out, his legendary work ethic and a memory that allowed him to recall almost every play he ever ran.

Brees was one of six quarterbacks on the list, and he beat three of them head-to-head on the way to a Super Bowl XLIV championship in 2009. He outdueled Brett Favre (No. 17 on this top-25 list, just behind Brees at No. 15) in the NFC championship game and defeated Peyton Manning (No. 4) with the whole word watching to win the Lombardi Trophy. That happened months after Brees and the Saints thumped Tom Brady (No. 1) so badly in prime time that he watched the last seven minutes of regulation from the New England Patriots bench.

It won’t be long before Brees joins Manning and Favre in the Pro Football Hall of Fame — he’s eligible for enshrinement in 2026, so he’ll get in before Brady in 2028 — but it’s tough to look back at his career and not wonder how much more he may have accomplished had he had a stronger team around him. Ah well. It’s all in the past now, but so are all of Brees’ big plays, inspiring pregame speeches, and electrifying comebacks. And those are all worth remembering as he waits patiently for enshrinement at Canton.

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Robert Meachem’s 44-yard fumble recovery is the Saints Play of the Day

Robert Meachem’s 44-yard fumble recovery for a touchdown is the Saints Play of the Day. It’s one of the wildest plays you’ll see:

How’s this for a throwback? With just 44 days left until the start of the New Orleans Saints’ 2024 season, we’re highlighting Robert Meachem’s 44-yard touchdown as the Saints Play of the Day.

But it’s a little more complicated than Drew Brees throwing the football and Meachem carrying it into the end zone. You really need to see it for yourself, but here’s how the official NFL gamebook summarized the play:

(Shotgun) D.Brees pass short middle intended for J.Shockey INTERCEPTED by K.Moore at WAS 30. K.Moore to WAS 44 for 44 yards (R.Meachem). FUMBLES (R.Meachem), RECOVERED  by NO-R.Meachem at WAS 44. R.Meachem for 44 yards,  TOUCHDOWN.

The Replay Assistant challenged the incomplete pass ruling, and the play was Upheld.

That’s right — Meachem made up for his quarterback’s mistake, and then some. Falling back under pressure while facing 3rd-and-26 in the final minute before halftime, trailing 17-10, Brees forced the ball to his tight end Jeremy Shockey to try and make a play. He took the snap out of shotgun at the Washington 48-yard line and backpedaled with multiple defenders in his face, ultimately throwing from New Orleans’ 41 while being shoved to the ground.

Several defenders crashed down on Shockey and safety Kareem Moore took the ball away. Then Meachem stepped in. Moore got to his feet and tried to work his way through traffic up to midfield, but Meachem stopped him, stripped the ball away, and sprinted down the sideline for what was arguably the play of the year.

Meachem came through again in the second half, catching a 54-yard touchdown pass from Brees that forced the game to overtime. A Garrett Hartley field goal in extra minutes put them ahead 33-30. The Saints returned to New Orleans with a tough win, having improved to 12-0, and they went on to win it all in Super Bowl XLIV.

You have to wonder how things may have gone differently if Meachem hadn’t made such a heady play. What if the Saints had lost in Washington and ceded homefield advantage throughout the playoffs to the Minnesota Vikings instead? Thankfully, we’re not in that timeline, so we don’t have to do more than wonder about it.

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ESPYs: Drew Brees introduces Steve Gleason for Arthur Ashe Award for Courage

Drew Brees introduced Steve Gleason as the Arthur Ashe Award for Courage recipient at the ESPYs on Thursday night. Both Saints legends shared powerful words:

Steve Gleason was recognized at the ESPYs on Thursday night as the recipient of the Arthur Ashe Award for Courage, and he was introduced to the audience and viewers at home by another New Orleans Saints legend: Drew Brees.

Brees and Gleason were only teammates for two years in 2006 and 2007, but they’ve remained close over the many years since, and it’s clear he thinks the world of No. 37. Brees spoke about Gleason’s impact on the iconic “Rebirth” game after Hurricane Katrina, his character, and the struggle he has experiencing in the face of a debilitating illness.

“When I think about Steve as a teammate, and a friend, I think of a guy who has always taken the idea of living to the next level,” Brees said. “Steve has always been interested in having a deeper conversation, going on a bigger adventure, finding ways to experience the wonders of the world in every possible way. Always curious to explore both the seen and the unseen of human emotion and connection. Experiencing plenty of fear along the way but never shying away. From challenging himself and those around him.”

Gleason was joined onstage by his son Rivers, at which he point he shared a speech of his own. While he has lost his voice and the use of his limbs to ALS, Gleason is able to communicate with text-to-speech software that allows him to write with his eyes, and he used this opportunity to reflect on what courage means, and how the support of those around him have allowed him to outlive a fatal diagnosis by more than a decade. His words were powerful, but we’ll let Gleason speak for himself. Take some time to watch it:

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Reggie Bush’s 61-yard TD is the Saints Play of the Day

Here’s your New Orleans Saints Play of the Day: Reggie Bush’s 61-yard game-breaking touchdown against the Dallas Cowboys back in 2006.

We’ve got 61 days left until the New Orleans Saints kick off their 2024 regular season, which makes Reggie Bush’s 61-yard touchdown against the Dallas Cowboys our Saints Play of the Day.

This was a game-breaker. The Saints were already up 21-10 early in the third quarter, having made the trip to old Texas Stadium (where the Cowboys played from 1971 to 2008, until they moved into Jerry Jones’ shiny new AT&T Stadium). But Sean Payton was determined to keep pouring it on his mentor Bill Parcells. Each team hit the field with an 8-4 record and Payton intended on leaving no doubt about which was the better squad.

So he dialed up a screen play for Bush, the rookie Heisman Trophy winner who had excited all of Louisiana. Drew Brees looked left and looped a pass to Bush in the flat. With several blockers in front of him it was all too easy for Bush to  cut through the Cowboys defense and extend New Orleans’ lead.

It’s a classic game now (watch the broadcast sometime if you can find it; John Madden and Al Michaels were great in prime time), but for many NFL fans this was the moment when the Saints truly arrived and proved they were more than a feel-good story in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. The Cowboys were favored by a touchdown and the over/under was set at 48 points, but the Saints wound up winning it 42-17, stunning the league in the process. Brees threw five touchdown passes and was only sacked once, while Bush totaled 162 scrimmage yards off of just a dozen touches. How’s that for a “welcome to the NFL” moment?

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