Category: Saints on Social Media

Adrian Peterson, Tom Brady, and everyone else congratulates Drew Brees

Saints quarterback Drew Brees broke the NFL record for career touchdown passes, earning praise from peers like Tom Brady and Russell Wilson.

New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees made NFL history on Monday night, breaking the all-time record for career touchdown passes with his performance against the Indianapolis Colts.

On top of that, Brees broke his own record for consecutive pass completions in a single game, stringing together 21 straight completed passes. If he keeps it up, the Saints’ living legend can break the NFL’s single-game record for completion percentage (he’s currently at 29-of-30, or 96.6%). It’s a vintage performance by every measure from the Hall of Fame-bound quarterback.

And it’s earned recognition from Brees’ peers around the league. Everyone from All-Pro quarterbacks Tom Brady and Russell Wilson to one-time teammate Adrian Peterson chimed in, as well as a host of retired greats like Hall of Fame passer Kurt Warner.

But before anyone takes aim at Peyton Manning for his silence on Brees breaking the record he set: Manning congratulated Brees before anyone else, during a video he recorded last year when Brees took his record for career passing yards. Check it out:

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Drew Brees congratulates Joe Burrow for winning Heisman Trophy

New Orelans Saints quarterback Drew Brees took time to congratulate neighboring LSU Tigers passer Joe Burrow for winning the Heisman Trophy.

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New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees is busy preparing for his team’s big “Monday Night Football” kickoff with the Indianapolis Colts, but he took time to record a special message of congratulations for LSU Tigers quarterback Joe Burrow, who won the 2019 Heisman Trophy on Saturday night.

Burrow did so while running a revamped Tigers offense that took a lot of inspiration from New Orleans, thanks to the addition of former Saints assistant Joe Brady to LSU coach Ed Orgeron’s staff (Brady won the Broyles Award, which recognizes the best assistant coach in the nation). And as fate would have it, Burrow wears the same jersey as Brees (No. 9), giving fans of both teams plenty of familiarity.

“Just wanted to tell you congratulations on winning the Heisman,” Brees said in a video shared from the Saints’ official Twitter account. “So well deserved. Such a phenomenal season. So much fun to watch. So congrats man, you deserve it, and enjoy it.” You can find his full comments in the video embedded below, or at this link.

However, Brees took time to emphasized what really matters the most: LSU’s bid to win a national championship. “But I know there’s still work to be done, you guys have a great opportunity ahead of you. Stay focused, keep your mind right, keep your team together. Man I know you deserve it, your team deserves it, Tiger Nation deserves it, South Louisiana deserves it. Go take it one at a time. Let’s go get it.”

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Teddy Bridgewater shares sideline with state title-winning high school team

New Orleans Saints QB Teddy Bridgewater loves high school football, and took time out of his Friday night to catch a state championship game

New Orleans Saints quarterback Teddy Bridgewater just loves football, at any level. Whether it’s watching his peers compete in the NFL each week or joining high school athletes on the sidelines of a state championship game, he wants to be there.

So when he heard that the St. James Wildcats were about to kick off the Class AAA state title from the Mercedes-Benz Superdome, Bridgewater jumped at the opportunity. He biked over from his home in the Warehouse District as he does every week, and quietly made his way through the tunnels beneath the Superdome to grab a first-row seat on the Wildcats’ bench. He picked the right side, because they won in a 51-14 landslide.

But there’s more to Bridgewater’s decision to spend his Friday night cheering on high schoolers and watching a football game. As he wrote later from his official Twitter account, “You gotta let them see you in the flesh. I grew up wanting to be like someone I saw on TV but I never met. Now we are in this influential position aka “on TV,” why not go hard for these youngin’s out here chasing their dreams? I’m here to help you chase that dream in real life.”

You love to see it. Bridgewater is an avid fan of high school sports and the connections he can make with younger athletes, returning often to his old stomping grounds at Miami Northwestern High School. He recently bought dinner for the team, coaches, and support staff after they advanced to their own state championship game (which they won, and for which he promised to deliver something special) and previously cameoed with the school dance team.

He’s a special person, and the Saints are lucky to have him. Hopefully they can work out a long-term contract extension in the offseason, but if not, Bridgewater certainly won’t be leaving with any ill will behind him.

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Roman Harper pushes back against ex-49er Donte Whitner’s trash talk

Former New Orleans Saints safety Roman Harper fired back after ex-San Francisco 49ers safety Donte Whitner took jabs at his team on Twitter.

The San Francisco 49ers are readying to kick off against the New Orleans Saints in the Mercedes-Benz Superdome on Sunday, leading former players from both teams to take to social media to reminiscence about their glory days, and maybe air some grievances ahead of this year’s Festivus celebration.

Former 49ers safety Donte Whitner fired the opening salvo, claiming his team delivered “karma for Bountygate” to the Saints in their infamous 2011 playoff game. In that matchup, Whitner got away with a dangerous helmet-to-helmet hit on Saints running back Pierre Thomas on the opening drive, knocking Thomas unconscious and concussing him. Whitner insisted that his tackle was made “The legal way,” which angered retired Saints safety Roman Harper.

“Bro what a joke,” Harper wrote, pointing out how the 49ers won that game after the Saints offense committed five turnovers, and giving Whitner’s defense credit for creating so many takeaways. He then warned Whitner against putting on a tough-guy act on social media.

At the time, Whitner’s hit on Thomas was ruled legal because Thomas not a defenseless player, having completed several football moves (catching a pass and running upfield) prior to being struck. But after increased public awareness about the dangers of concussions suffered in sports put pressure on the NFL, rules changes in 2017 and 2018 outlawed all helmet-to-helmet hits like this under a blanket policy. Thomas was lucky to not suffer line-changing effects from the brain injury Whitner inflicted on him; others haven’t been so lucky.

Harper was one of several Saints players involved in the NFL’s “Bountygate” scandal, in which league commissioner Roger Goodell used the testimony of a disgruntled former Saints team employee (who now works in the league office) as grounds to suspend multiple players and team personnel for much of the 2012 season. Upon reviewing Goodell’s evidence for the claims made against the Saints and the under-oath testimony of then-linebackers coach Joe Vitt and others implicated in the drama, NFL-appointed arbiter and former commissioner Paul Tagliabue overturned all player suspensions and later reprimanded his successor in an interview with Rolling Stone.

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Saints reveal uniform combination for Week 14 vs. 49ers

The New Orleans Saints announced their jersey-pants uniform combination for their Week 14 game against the San Francisco 49ers.

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The New Orleans Saints will be wearing black jerseys with black pants during Sunday’s game with the San Francisco 49ers, the team announced in an email shared with season-ticket holders detailing gameday festivities. The black-on-black uniform has been the Saints’ most-common look dating back to the 2017 season, and one of their most-winningest, logging a 15-5 record.

NFL rules stipulate that teams may only wear alternate jerseys (like the Saints’ “Color Rush” duds) three times per season, and they hit that limit last week against the Atlanta Falcons (having previously broken out the threads earlier this year in games with the Seattle Seahawks and Dallas Cowboys). So we’ll be rolling with the black home jerseys and white away jerseys the rest of the season.

For the superstitious: the all-black look ranks high in winning percentage among uniform combinations used often since Sean Payton was hired to coach the team, back in 2006. We’d be remiss to not mention the alternate gold jerseys used during a 2002 game against the Minnesota Vikings, which they lost 32-31. Those jerseys haven’t been seen since.

Here is every uniform permutation used by the Saints during Payton’s tenure, ranked by winning percentage:

  • White jerseys, white pants: 3-0 (1.000)
  • “Color Rush” alternates: 6-2 (.750)
  • Black and gold throwbacks: 2-1 (.667)
  • Black jerseys, gold pants: 23-13 (.639)
  • Black jerseys, black pants: 40-26 (.606)
  • White jerseys, black pants: 38-25 (.603)
  • White jerseys, gold pants: 31-24 (.564)

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Former Saints CB Jabari Greer shares his thoughts on always-evolving offense

Jabari Greer practiced against the New Orleans Saints offense every day for almost four years, and he’s noticed changes in today’s team.

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Jabari Greer was one of the unsung heroes of the 2009 New Orleans Saints squad, which won Super Bowl XLIV and brought the city its first Lombardi Trophy. The veteran cornerback started several years for New Orleans and consistently manned up against the best receivers in the league.

His playing career ended with a torn ACL, but Greer has found success in covering NFL games in Canada for TSN and contributing to the SEC Network as a college football analyst, a role he’s enjoyed as a proud Tennessee Volunteers alum.

When prompted by a fan to discuss the changes in the 2019 Saints offense against the unit Greer played alongside from 2009 to 2013, Greer acknowledged the differences seen today while praising Saints coach Sean Payton and his staff for creatively working with the personnel they have, and not trying to put players in positions they aren’t suited for.

“Great question! I believe the Saints have adjusted their offense based on the personnel they have available, and not draft based on the system that is in place,” Greer wrote from his official Twitter account. “That is good coaching! Humbly asking ‘Who do we have, and how can we make ‘em shine.'”

A great illustration of Greer’s point would be Taysom Hill. Nominally a quarterback, the Saints have developed Hill’s positional versatility to a point where he’s scoring multiple touchdowns (both on the ground and through the air) while making an impact on special teams with blocked punts, all in the same game.

Obviously it would be great if the Saints had the personnel to where Payton doesn’t have to scheme up so much smoke and so many mirrors. If they had, for example, another wide receiver to make plays opposite Michael Thomas then things would be going much more smoothly — but their best options, Ted Ginn Jr. and Tre’Quan Smith, have caught just 38% of their targets since the bye week.

The Saints will have opportunities to improve that position group in the offseason. But for now, it’s like Greer said — good coaching and creative adjustments to personnel are helping the Saints win the day, week in and week out.

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Drew Brees gifts signed jersey to rising pro tennis star Madison Keys

New Orleans Saints QB Drew Brees gifted a signed jersey to Women’s Tennis Association professional Madison Keys, a rising star in the sport.

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New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees is a month-and-some-change away from his 41st birthday, and the Hall of Fame-bound passer appears to have take an increased interest in what younger athletes are accomplishing, or about to — like the arrival of New Orleans Pelicans rookie Zion Williamson, who received an autographed jersey as a housewarming gift from Brees. He’s offered his advice to Williamson as a mentor, and done the same for phenomenal Houston Texans quarterback Deshaun Watson.

But Brees isn’t limiting his attention to basketball and football. Before committing himself to football, he famously competed against Andy Roddick when they were both in school together. The future men’s tennis world champion says that he initially won twice, but defeated Brees so soundly he hung up his racket and focused on football.

So it’s clear that Brees is still keeping up with the goings-on in a sport he once considered, and reached out to professional women’s tennis player Madison Keys. Keys recently won the 2019 Cincinnati Open in her first career Premier 5 title, putting her on the map as a potential heir to superstars Venus and Serena Williams in a few years.

Keys received a No. 1 jersey from the Saints that was signed by Brees, and she took the time to thank him in a video from the official Women’s Tennis Association Twitter account, expressing gratitude and excitement at displaying it in her home. Check it out in the video embedded below, or by following this link:

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Teddy Bridgewater buys dinner for his Miami high school football team

New Orleans Saints QB Teddy Bridgewater showed his appreciation for Miami Northwestern High School by buying dinner for the football team.

The New Orleans Saints were given a rare weekend off after their Thursday night win over the Atlanta Falcons, so backup quarterback Teddy Bridgewater took the opportunity to return to one of his favorite places in the world: Miami Northwestern Senior High School, where he bought the football team dinner after their big win over Jesuit High School in the state semifinals. And he made sure to bring ribs.

According to posts on social media, Bridgewater contracted several Miami-area food trucks to service the players, coaches, and auxiliary staff free of charge, doing his part to show gratitude to the school and program where his football career started. Bridgewater started three years at Miami Northwestern, where they went 32-8 and made several deep playoff pushes in one of the nation’s toughest high school circuits.

A Miami native, Bridgewater has often visited his hometown when the opportunity arose, including a guest appearance with his high school’s dance team during a game earlier this season. Last summer, he organized a giveaway for the kids in his old neighborhood, handing out school supplies, toys, bicycles and water guns to everyone who stopped by. It’s clear that Bridgewater remembers where he’s come from, and his gracious nature has done a lot to ingratiate him to his new Saints teammates and their fans.

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Teddy Bridgewater makes ‘Friday Night Lights’ hat tip to Taysom Hill

New Orleans Saints backup quarterback Teddy Bridgewater made a creative salute to Taysom Hill after his huge day against the Atlanta Falcons

There are few rooms around the NFL stocked with as much talent as the New Orleans Saints boast at quarterback, much less the chemistry those players share. Sure, Drew Brees is the unquestioned leader in the building and the face of the franchise — but both of his backups have stepped up to help their team when called upon, and they clearly appreciate each other.

That was clear after versatile reserve Taysom Hill scored two touchdowns (one through the air, another on the ground) and blocked the Atlanta Falcons’ first punt in their game on Thanksgiving. After the game, Teddy Bridgewater creatively saluted Hill’s performance on social media.

Responding to a tweet in which the Saints referred to Hill as “Mr. Do-It-All,” Bridgewater shared a clip from the 2004 film “Friday Night Lights” in which a character talks up his highly-recruited nephew to college scouts. You love to see it. Check it out for yourself in the video embedded below, or by following this link:

It’s going to be interesting to see which path each of these quarterbacks takes in the offseason. All three of them are headed for free agency, though Hill should be the easiest player for the Saints to retain. It wouldn’t be a huge shock if Brees seriously considers retirement, but that feels unlikely after he missed five games with injury earlier this year. Bridgewater has been groomed to become the heir-apparent, but he could get an offer he can’t refuse in free agency. If Nick Foles and Kirk Cousins can get contracts worth in excess of $80 million, why can’t he?

So be sure to appreciate these moments while we can. The Saints have built something special, and it’s well worth remembering once things change someday.

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Steve Gleason taunts the Falcons after early gaffe: ‘Never punt’

New Orleans Saints legend Steve Gleason didn’t pass up the opportunity to taunt the NFC South-rival Atlanta Falcons after a botched punt.

No one was happier to see the New Orleans Saints block an Atlanta Falcons punt early in their game on Thanksgiving night than Steve Gleason, the living legend whose own block against the Falcons is immortalized with a bronze statue outside the Mercedes-Benz Superdome.

Even though his playing days are long behind him, the Saints’ retired playmaker remains an avid fan of his old team and made sure to tune in for their game with his family After Saints quarterback Taysom Hill cut through the Atlanta line to deflect the punt away, giving his team the ball, Gleason took to his official Twitter account to taunt the Falcons:

Gleason has been battling amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) since 2011, a neurodegenerative disease that has confined him to a wheelchair and taken away his ability to speak. He now relies on cutting-edge software to type on an electric keyboard with his eyes, using a text-to-speech program  to communicate.

But he and his family haven’t let that condition prevent him from living his life to the fullest. The Gleasons continue to travel often, and they welcomed their second child to their family last year. He remains a common sight on the sidelines at Saints games and is actively involved in his Team Gleason Foundation.

So here’s to Steve Gleason, one of the greatest alumni of Saints coach Sean Payton’s management of the team. Despite all the adversity he’s experienced, he still has his sense of humor, and is eager to use it to dunk on the Falcons.

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