New Orleans Saints: Three things we’ve learned so far without Drew Brees
By Jason Reed
The New Orleans Saints have now played three full games without Drew Brees and the results have been better than anticipated.
The New Orleans Saints suffered a huge blow in Week 2 against the Los Angeles Rams when Aaron Donald gave Drew Brees too aggressive of a high five and tore a ligament in Brees’ throwing thumb.
The result of such was surgery and an injury timetable of around six weeks, although it was unclear at the time how long it would really take. Right now, it appears as if Brees could come back a week earlier than expected.
However, it would not be surprising to see the Saints hold off on Brees until after the bye week to make sure that he is 100 percent ready for the end of the season and the playoffs. They have been afforded the luxury to do so by going 3-0 in Brees’ absence.
The Saints moved to 4-1 on the season with a 31-24 victory over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and have the Jaguars, Bears and Cardinals before the bye week.
The Jaguars are a sneaky team, especially in Jacksonville, and you cannot discount the Bears’ defense. With Arizona being one of the worst teams in the league, it would not be all that surprising to see the Saints at 6-2 heading into the bye.
That is at least what they have shown us they are capable of without Brees. In fact, we have learned three things about the Saints during this three-game stretch. Let’s break them down.