The time has come again. Saints fans are almost immune to the talk of a whether or not Drew Brees will leave their beloved New Orleans Saints. Regardless, Brees is up for renewal. And just like old times, Drew Brees has assured Who Dat Nation, that he wants to stay in the black and gold indefinitely. Similarly, the majority of Saints fans are in agreement: Drew Brees should remain in New Orleans for a long time. That being said, there are always the doubters when the season rolls around.
Drew Brees’ Leadership Makes a Lifelong New Orleans Saints
The Evidence
First and foremost, the answer may have been different a year ago, just after three straight 7-9 seasons. Even with a future Hall of Famer, the New Orleans Saints simply were not good enough to sniff the playoffs from 2014-2016. The Saints were known to put up 30-40 points a game, but their defense had more holes than swiss cheese. Nevertheless, the powers that be decided to run the same blueprints that have not been working in recent drafts.
After the NFL Draft was over, there was hope. Granted, the experts and fans still felt that the team was still a couple of years away. And after the first two games, the voices started to echo loudly. Fans started to jump ship. The media was getting more impatient. To put it another way, all hell was breaking loose in a hurry. Then there was Drew Brees.
People may watch that video and see two different things. Obviously, Drew Brees is the ultimate believer of the glass is always half full. Brees has proven since he was a teenager that faith and belief cannot be separated. This quote from his teenage days at Westlake High School sums it up. Drew Brees said the following after he had a severe ACL injury.
“I had been getting recruiting letters from some good schools, but when I blew out my knee, all the letters stopped. No school wanted to touch me. The worst part about it was that I would also miss the entire basketball and baseball seasons. And in my mind, my number one priority was still to get a baseball scholarship. I was only a junior in high school, and it felt like my life was over. I had a six-month rehabilitation process, and I had to make a decision. Was I going to quit or come back stronger? I chose to come back stronger.”
The Difference Between ‘In Faith’ and ‘Believing’
Drew Brees is going to be in the Hall of Fame one day in Canton, Ohio. That’s something no one has to debate. However, holding on to to a belief, when no one can see it is the ultimate definition of Brees. He saw it up close after Hurricane Katrina. A wrong turn for Sean Payton ended up being the best of turns. Sean Payton was driving Drew Brees back to the practice facility when he got undoubtedly lost. Payton had to call general manager Mickey Loomis for directions, but the turn into devastation was no doubt the turn that started the Saints journey to becoming perennial contenders.
“Oh clearly, I’m thinking this hasn’t gone smooth. And it was already a difficult one to begin with, considering the condition of the city at that time was awful,” Payton said. “Brittany’s in the back seat of the car dozing off, and now our itinerary’s off. We were supposed to have two hours of down time before having dinner at Emeril’s, and now I’m dropping them off late.”
Brees ended up seeing the hardest hit part of New Orleans with water lines on houses and a plethora of unconscionable damage. But Brees believed, “This is where I belong, and I felt like this was a calling.”
Drew Brees felt that New Orleans is the place to be. Brees believed that this is where his destiny lied. And when the Saints were 0-2 in 2017, Brees didn’t blink. His leadership is gonna be looked back on as one of his best traits as a quarterback. There’s simply no place like dome.
Main Image:
