The New Orleans Saints franchise quarterback Drew Brees left yesterday’s game versus the Los Angeles Rams with an injury to his throwing hand.
Drew Brees Injury Puts Saints Season in Jeopardy
When Drew Brees left the game against the Rams at the end of the first quarter, the extent of his injury was not known. After the game he spoke briefly about it saying that he is concerned but he did not know how bad it was. The one thing we do know is that it was bad enough for him not to be able to continue.
With Drew Brees in the lineup, the Saints are a Super Bowl contender. Without him, they might not even make the playoffs. It’s too early to determine how far they could go without Brees because Teddy Bridgewater was basically thrown into the fire yesterday. Of all the backup quarterbacks in the NFL, Bridgewater might be the best one. If he can be competent which he has shown in the past, then he might be able to hold things down until Brees gets back. Of course this is all speculation because we don’t know how bad Brees’ injury is.
Where Do the Saints Go from Here?
At this point nobody knows how long Brees will be out but it looks likely that he will miss time. Whatever is wrong with his hand isn’t going to heal in a week if it was enough to knock him out of a game. With that in mind, it’s time for this Saints defense to step up.
Over the past few years, Sean Payton has done a great job improving his defense which takes the pressure of Drew Brees to have to put up a lot of points every week to win. With Brees out of action, this team will have to change their offensive approach. That also means that they will be leaning on this defense to keep the team within striking distance. They did not do a bad job last night as 27 points is a respectable number against a high powered Rams offense.
Sean Payton Faces His Toughest Test
The Saints did not score a touchdown last night for only the third time since Sean Payton has taken over as head coach. When you realize that he was coaching in his 193rd game with the Saints, you begin to realize how unbelievable that is. Payton has built a prolific offense around an elite quarterback.
Now he will need to figure out how to built an offense around a backup QB so that his defense has a chance to keep them in games. The first thing we can expect is that the Saints offense will run the ball a lot more. That’s not necessarily a bad thing because if you look closely at their offense over the last few season, that’s the way Sean Payton has been trending anyway. Alvin Kamara is one of the best running backs in the league. Even though he isn’t a traditional between the tackles running back, he gets the job done.
Drew Brees is a Warrior
If they Saints can count on one thing, it’s that Brees will be back as soon as possible. He has only ever missed one start in his career back in 2015. Considering most skeptics thought he was too small to be a franchise QB when he came out of college, his endurance has been remarkable.
When Sean Payton spent a 3rd round pick to acquire Bridgewater, he did it with the mindset that a 40-year-old QB could get hurt an any time. While this injury was a fluke and really has nothing to do with age, Payton is already winning that trade. He will of course need Bridgewater to make plays at some point but until Brees comes back, they have the best available replacement in the league. If Sean Payton can keep this team in contention in time for Brees to heal up, the Saints could be more dangerous than ever come playoff time.
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