New Orleans Saints News & Rumors

Saints coach Sean Payton says he does not plan to place quarterback Drew Brees on injured reserve. That means Brees will be eligible to return in less than eight weeks, which is excellent news for the Saints. 

This jibes with what we heard shortly after Brees was diagnosed with a torn ligament in his thumb earlier this week. The initial estimate was six weeks, so he’s likely on track for that same window.

If he’s out for six weeks, Brees will miss games against the Seahawks (this Sunday), Cowboys, Buccaneers, Jaguars, Bears, and Cardinals. After that, the Saints have a bye week, which would put Brees on target for a Nov. 10 return at home against the rival Falcons.

In the interim, the Saints are moving forward with Teddy Bridgewater as the starter and Taysom Hill as his lone backup. With Brees still on the 53-man roster, the club is unlikely to consider an outside arm to round out the QB room.

Quarterback Drew Brees left the Saints’ loss to the Rams today after injuring the thumb on his throwing hand. Following the game, the future Hall of Famer didn’t sound particularly optimistic about his ailment.

“Yeah I am concerned,” Brees told reporters (including ESPN’s Mike Triplett). “I’m hoping it’s not too significant.”

Brees revealed that he injured his thumb after hitting the hand of Rams defensive tackle Aaron Donald. The veteran didn’t return to the game, and he was seen with a lower hand/wrist wrap as he stood on the sideline. Brees told reporters after the game that he already underwent x-rays and is set to visit a hand specialist, and he warned that his status is “all up in the air right now” (via Katherine Terrell of The Athletic on Twitter).

As Triplett notes, the durable quarterback has missed only one single game since high school: a 2015 matchup against the Panthers when he was recovering from a shoulder injury. Brees also suffered a major shoulder injury towards the end of the 2005 season, but he managed to return in time for the start of the 2006 campaign.

While losing Brees would naturally have a significant impact on their season, the Saints believe highly in their backups. Teddy Bridgewater is the highest-paid backup in the NFL, and the team gave up relatively-significant draft capital to acquire him in the first place. The 26-year-old finished Sunday’s game having completed 17 of his 30 attempts for 165 yards and no touchdowns. The Saints are also rostering quarterback Taysom Hill, although the coaching staff seems to prefer him in his Swiss-Army-knife role.