Which plays caused Drew Brees the most problems in his storied NFL career? The former New Orleans Saints quarterback and future Pro Football Hall of Famer shared his perspective on the toughest challenges he and his teammates have had to overcome during an appearance on Wednesday .
Brees said it was those division games on a short week, played in prime time under the bright lights, that cost him the most sleep. He puts a lot of emphasis on what the Detroit Lions and Green Bay Packers players are going through before kickoff Thursday night.
“Those games were more difficult,” Brees said. “Those games were more difficult just because of the familiarity of the division opponents. And especially when they're division opponents that have the caliber of Green Bay and Detroit, the caliber of a quarterback, the caliber of a team, the caliber of a coach. Because there's so much familiarity that at the beginning of the game you were constantly thinking, 'Well man, they know us really well.' They know all of these tendencies. So you know that I know that we know that they know, “You go through this whole exercise.”
Mind games were certainly part of it; In some cases, Brees and the Saints played the same Atlanta Falcons team twice in three weeks, and that recency and familiarity made scheduling a rematch a unique challenge. And in those situations, Brees said, he and his teammates relied on days of careful preparation to win the day.
Brees continued, “Ultimately it comes down to, 'We have to be so spot-on in our execution.' “This has to be a game of impeccable execution.” And that really became the focus in all of these division games, especially the ones that were in prime time and the ones that have so much significance given the status of these guys and their fight for the division title . So I found those were the most difficult games given all the factors.”
Still, the results suggest that Brees and his teammates are up to the challenge. Brees started nine games with the Saints against NFC South division rivals on Thursday night, winning six times. He beat the Atlanta Falcons 5-2 and the Carolina Panthers 1-1 (the Tampa Bay Buccaneers would never have warranted such a prime-time slot). You don't achieve a Hall of Fame career without enjoying the challenge, and there aren't many tougher games in the NFL than against familiar opponents on a short week.
