Big Easy Believer
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Decision For Brees To Sit Is The Smart Play For Saints

By Gene Higginbotham

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Yesterday was a pretty monumental event for the New Orleans Saints as word came that franchise quarterback Drew Brees would not play for only the second time in his tenure in New Orleans.

The first time Brees sat was in a meaningless game against the Carolina Panthers on January 3, 2010 where the Saints had already wrapped up homfield advantage in the playoffs that season.

Ironically the Panthers are once again on the receiving end of a Brees-less Saints team who will turn to backup Luke McCown to end their current losing streak.

Aug 13, 2015; Baltimore, MD, USA; New Orleans Saints quarterback Luke McCown (7) throws during the first quarter against the Baltimore Ravens in a preseason NFL football game at M&T Bank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Tommy Gilligan-USA TODAY Sports

So unlike 2010, this game has a bit riding on it as the Saints are already at the bottom of the NFC South and could find themselves in a bigger fix than 0-3 if they lose to the Panthers.

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That would place the Saints 0-2 in the NFC South as well as put them at 0-3 in the NFC Conference which is a huge hole to climb out of considering their hated division rival, the Atlanta Falcons — look to be in the drivers seat for now at 2-0.

Now seems the time to have your best weapon out on the field to lead the team to their first win of the season and against a division opponent at that.

But the decision to have Brees sit this Sunday is probably the smartest play that head coach Sean Payton has called all season.

And like many of the plays the Saints run on offense, Brees had a huge say on the matter of whether he would be playing or not.

To be honest, I was a little surprised at the announcement coming in such an early fashion since Payton is usually so secretive and I figured it would be one of those “game-time decisions”.

Nov 24, 2014; New Orleans, LA, USA; New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees (9) talks to head coach Sean Payton in the first quarter of their game against the Baltimore Ravens at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome. Mandatory Credit: Chuck Cook-USA TODAY Sports

I was also surprised for the simple fact that both Brees and Payton agreed it would be best to not play him due to the well documented competitive nature of Brees that we’ve seen him live and die on both sides of that sword.

My fear was that even if Brees was 70% healthy with his injured shoulder, he would want to play anyway and the Panthers defense would make sure he paid for that decision, not just with turnovers but also inducing further injury on the ailing quarterback.

I’m not trying to call the Panthers dirty players, but the defense is extremely physical and sometimes seem to ride the line between that and what is considered worthy of a yellow flag.

The best translation would that the ghost of 2010 NFC Championship Brett Farve and defensive coordinator Gregg Williams would come to haunt the Saints with the Panthers defense delivering some repeated “remember me” shots to Brees to rattle him.

And if Brees just happened to get injured even further with these shots…well then so be it.

Dec 7, 2014; New Orleans, LA, USA; Carolina Panthers defensive end Mario Addison (97) sacks New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees (9) during the second half of a game at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome. The Panthers defeated the Saints 41-10. Mandatory Credit: Derick E. Hingle-USA TODAY Sports

The groaning from fans that “we might not as well play” is understandable with McCown not starting a game since September 18, 2011 and that performance was less than desirable with six completed passes for 59 yards and four interceptions.

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I’m likely in the minority to want third round pick Garrett Grayson to start and as much as I want to see what the future heir to Brees can do, it’s probably not fair to throw him into the fire against that defense.

McCown may not give the Saints the best chance to win, at least he has a chance to give the team a win and also give Brees’ injured shoulder some much needed rest.

WWL 870 AM football and draft analyst Mike Detillier gave a ray of hope that McCown does have a strong arm that will allow for those deep shots the Saints have been missing on, it’s just that he’s not consistent with some of his throws.

Ultimately that’s what pulled the trigger on the status of Brees after he and Payton both saw that after some throws at practice that the velocity just wasn’t there and that Brees wasn’t able to hit on several of his passes.

Another smart play by the way, since we all saw what can happen when Brees lacks the velocity to properly put the right amount of zip or touch on the ball last Sunday against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Sep 20, 2015; New Orleans, LA, USA; Tampa Bay Buccaneers defensive back Chris Conte (23) intercepts a pass in front of New Orleans Saints wide receiver Brandin Cooks (10) during the second half of a game at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome. The Buccaneers defeated the Saints 26-19. Mandatory Credit: Derick E. Hingle-USA TODAY Sports

It seems that the Saints need to make a push now to regain their footing on the schedule but having a healthy Brees at 100% is better than a hobbled Brees even at 80% since the latter will try to force several throws that could lead to game changing plays for a Saints opponent.

If McCown does well against the Panthers, it’s not out of the realm of possibility that he starts against the Philadelphia Eagles if Brees still needs to heal more and the Saints, or Brees, don’t want to push him back too soon.

While the Saints season my seem destined for the #1 pick of the draft right now, there is still plenty of games left and to be successful they’ll need their franchise quarterback at full strength to do it.

Next: Saints QB Luke McCown's Best Games as a Starter: Can He Have One at Carolina?

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