The cliche 'if you don't use it, you lose it' is apparently true of NFL quarterbacks, at least that's how Drew Brees tells it.
The retired Saints quarterback was asked in a Q&A with Mike Tirico this week whether he'd consider a return to the NFL should a quarterback-needy team come calling. He didn't rule it out, but made it clear it was a very unlikely scenario.
"I better get my butt going if that's the case," Brees said, indicating he hasn't been working for that potential situation.
"My arm is killing me because I haven't been training to throw. I actually feel worse now than at any other point in my NFL career. I may have one throw, one series, one drive."
Related
The Saints quarterback had previously spoken to the viral workout video showing him pushing a weight sled up a hill before he made the announcement. While that visual started the fires of conversations among Saints fans regarding his possible return, he told Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk that he'd already made the decision at that point. In fact, he knew when he announced his return for 2020 that'd be his final ride.
Where'd the workout come into play, then? It was a typical daily challenge set up by his longtime trainer Todd Durkin. Brees took it a step further to show the "young whipper-snappers" how it was done, and the conversation spun from there.
Durkin had even texted him to say "watch what this stirs up," Brees shared, before his trainer sent the video to social media.
"I didn’t say a word, right? There’s no audio or anything of me in any of that, it’s just merely me pushing a sled, right? Isn’t it amazing what can be interpreted from something just so simple, right?" Brees said. "It didn’t even involve me saying a word. I actually got a big kick out of that."
Brees retired this offseason after two decades in the NFL, 14 of which came with the Saints. His former football team has moved on, setting up for a quarterback competition in training camp between Jameis Winston and Taysom Hill.
Brees also weighed in on that situation on his call with Tirico, his new broadcast partner for Notre Dame football this fall. Brees will also serve as a studio analyst for Sunday Night Football.
Related
“Taysom has an infectious love for the game. There is not a guy who is more respected for that and for what he brings to the team. Jameis was such a joy to be around. He also loves the game and loves to work at it. You can tell that football consumes his thoughts," Brees said in the interview. "He wants to be a great player and continue to improve. Whatever happens, in terms of whoever is the starter, I do think there is a scenario where both of them are playing. If Jameis is the starter I think Taysom is seeing a lot of action at quarterback, maybe even moreso than he did with me.”
For more from the interview, click here.