The Denver Broncos' coach says he wasn't contacted by Drew Brees before the AFC Championship Game about a possible comeback.
The Denver Broncos had a rough time in the heartland last night, and one of the stories that spiced up their day a little was coach Sean Payton considering playing his former Hall of Fame quarterback, Drew Brees, after the injury sustained by quarterback Bo Nix that took him out of the AFC Championship Game.
Payton says he knew nothing about this, according to a report from Nick Kosmider of The Athletic. The report had two former assistant coaches, offensive assistants Joe Lombardi and Pete Carmichael, reaching out to Brees ahead of the game.
The initial report about this came via ESPN, and it’s a fairly ridiculous story. Brees is 47, and there are so many questions about the injuries he sustained during his long career with the New Orleans Saints and whether he was in anything close to football shape that it’s not even worth listing them all.
But Payton’s response was clear, and it’s very easy to take him at his word in this one.
“I just know that I was the odd man out,” Payton said after the Broncos suffered a 31-10 loss to the Chiefs. “I never heard anything about it. It never came to anything. I was only told about it later, so I was just like you guys.”
So what’s the real story behind this? That’s a mystery, but it’s important to note that Lombardi and Carmichael are former coaches, and this is something Payton would undoubtedly done himself if the possibility of Brees playing was even remotely on the table.
Conditioning issues aside, Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk pointed out some important logistical and administrative details that also point to it being a silly story. Brees remains on the Saints’ reserve-retired list, he noted, which would have generated a tampering charge if either coach had contacted the quarterback about the possibility.
The last time Payton and Brees saw each other, as far as we know, was when Brees was inducted into the Hall of Fame in Canton back in August. Payton was his presenter, and it was a nostalgia-tinged weekend for the coach and Brees, who remain good friends.
Brees has also been rumored to be trying to get back into the media game as an analyst. He tried out the gig and wasn’t very good or very interested, but the likes of Tom Brady and Tony Romo have made it a lot more lucrative.
That aspect may or may not have been part of the story with Brees trying to get his name out there again, but there’s really no reason to take this particular story seriously.
