METAIRIE, La. – Drew Brees will return to the New Orleans Saints’ starting lineup in time for Sunday’s showdown against Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs, a source told ESPN’s Adam Schefter.
The saints believe Brees is completely healthy and doctors have allowed him to play, the source told Schefter.
It will be the first meeting between the two elite quarterbacks, as their teams will be placed at the top of their respective conferences.
Brees, 41, has returned to practice this week after losing four games due to 11 broken ribs and a punctured lung. Saints coach Sean Payton insisted Brees would not be rushed into training again and that he should be “asymptomatic, feel good, strong and as if he could work, be an asset and play well.” Apparently, Brees met the standard he had to meet.
“There’s an element of recovery, there’s an element of strength. And I’ll know when that time comes,” Brees said in his most recent interview with Cox Sports Television Sunday night.
The Saints (10-3) were 3-1 in Brees ’absence with Taysom Hill as the starting quarterback. Last week they suffered a 24-21 loss to Philadelphia, leaving them currently in the No. 2 row in the NFC. (The 10-3 Green Bay Packers have a head-to-head tiebreaker).
With Brees back in starting lineup, Jameis Winston will continue to be the Saints ’No. 2 quarterback, with Hill playing his lead role, including some plays in QB, a source told Schefter.
Brees has always been proud to try to exceed the schedules set by doctors when recovering from injuries. But it could have even more incentives than usual in this one, its twentieth season, as it could be the last.
Although Brees has never made any announcements about when he plans to retire, sources have informed Schefter that he is expected to do so after this season. Payton has also hinted that the Saints are gearing up for that possibility when they talk about the team’s long-term quarterback prospects. Brees already has a post-game career lined up as an NBC analyst.
Until last year, Brees had only lost one game in his entire NFL career due to an injury. But he missed five games in 2019 due to a broken ligament in his thumb and four more games this year.
Brees suffered a punctured lung and some of his broken ribs during Week 10’s victory over the San Francisco 49ers. He played the last eight minutes of the first half (and completed two touchdowns) before he could continue playing after the break.
Doctors believe the rest of the broken ribs occurred a week earlier in the Holy Week 9 victory in Tampa Bay.
Although Brees faced scrutiny over his lack of pitches on the field earlier this season, he and the Saints recovered impressively after a 1-2 start. He ranks third in the NFL in Total QBR (80.6) with 18 TD passes, three interceptions, a league-leading 73.5% completion percentage and 2,196 passing yards.
The Saints will have two games in six days next week. They are scheduled to host the Minnesota Vikings on Christmas Day.