Drew Brees' playing days may be over, but it appears he'll remain a fixture in national coverage of America's favorite sport.
The legendary quarterback, who officially called it a career over the weekend, is joining NBC Sports as a football analyst, he revealed during a Monday morning appearance on The Today Show.
Brees, appearing with host Hoda Kotb, explained how he and his family decided it was time for him to move on, and said he was looking forward to the "next chapter" in his long career in the game.
“I’m going to be working for NBC," Brees said. "I'm part of the team now, a new team. I’m excited about that journey.”
The move was widely expected after it was reported last year that Brees had opted to sign with NBC, apparently eschewing an offer from ESPN to join the Monday Night Football booth.
The likely future Hall of Famer will serve as a studio analyst for Football Night in America on Sunday evenings. On Saturdays, he'll also be in the booth to provide analysis for Notre Dame football games, which have long been carried by the Peacock Network.
Brees, who turned 42 in January, would have been a relatively unremarkable choice as recently as a year ago, but that all changed when he made himself the leading exponent of resistance to peaceful player protests against systemic racism and police violence, when he boldly declared that he could never tolerate "disrespecting the flag."
The native Texan later apologized for the ham-fisted remarks amid fierce backlash, but the damage appeared to have been done.
The incident set the tone for a strange and at times trying final season for the Purdue product, who missed time with rib and lung injuries after absorbing some crushing hits in a Week 10 contest against San Francisco, and was a frequent target for frustrated fans who felt that his apparently diminishing game was hurting a team that might otherwise be poised for a title run.
The Super Bowl XLIV champion and 2006 All-Pro was expected to be groomed as a potential replacement for Cris Collinsworth on the SNF broadcast, Andrew Marchand of the New York Post reported last year.
On Monday, Brees said it was important for him to remain a part of the game beyond his playing career, and hinted at forthcoming charity undertakings in Louisiana.
"I'm excited to stay very closely connected with the game of football, it's been such an important part of my life.
"There's so many philanthropic endeavors that we are involved with, especially here in the city of New Orleans. A lot of those will be announced here over the coming months. I'll be honest, I am most excited about those things because I think that's where we can make the biggest impact. There's still so much need in this country, and certainly this city, and I'm excited that we have the opportunity to be involved in those things and create some models, some sustainable models, that we can replicate throughout this country to continue to push us forward."
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