When looking for an emergency quarterback to sign amid a COVID outbreak, it's probably not worth taking too long a look at a guy who seems perfectly content in a new post-football job and has resisted comeback murmurs before... but that didn't stop the New Orleans Saints from doing exactly that.
According to Jeff Duncan of NOLA.com, franchise legend and NFL all-time great Drew Brees was one of the quarterbacks they reached out to after finding out that both Taysom Hill and Trevor Siemian would be unable to play in Week 16 due to COVID protocols. And, believe it or not, Duncan says that the NBC Sports analyst actually considered the possibility.
Duncan learned that Brees was the first person the team called — they might as well go for the coolest option earliest, right? — and he "gave the idea some serious thought" from everything that Duncan had heard. But given the fact that there was such short notice and he wasn't necessarily fresh and/or confident in his abilities to effectively play the position right now, which could have potentially jeopardized the Saints' playoff chances, he turned it down. Even while rejecting the team, he had their best interests in mind. Now that's a Saint for life... sorry, Chargers fans.
Also on the Saints' "wish list" — though their real wish was probably that COVID-19 didn't have to run through their quarterback group as the playoff race reaches its most critical point — were longtime signal-callers Philip Rivers and Josh McCown. But as of now Ian Book is the guy, and he's understandably pretty pumped about that.
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"It’s an unbelievable opportunity," Book said (h/t Charean Williams of PFT). "I don’t know what it’s going to feel like. I’ve played in big games, but I think this is the biggest, obviously. We’re professionals now and this is Monday Night Football."
When the line opened, the Saints were 3.5-point favorites over the Dolphins. Now, Miami is viewed as a 2.5-point favorite, showing the big swing that the COVID outbreak has caused. Likely adding to that significant change is the absence of linebacker Demario Davis, who was placed on the COVID list on Friday.
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