New Orleans Saints: Drew Brees reportedly will start in Week 8
By Jason Reed
The New Orleans Saints are 5-0 in games started by Teddy Bridgewater and it appears now that Drew Brees will be back under center in Week 8.
The New Orleans Saints‘ season seemed to be hanging in jeopardy midway through Week 2 after Drew Brees was knocked out of the game with what was later revealed to a torn ligament in his right thumb. The Los Angeles Rams thoroughly beat the Saints and their backup, Teddy Bridgewater.
It was announced that Brees would miss around six weeks with the injury, and with three NFC playoff teams on the slate in the next six games, things did not look great for the Saints. The narrative was how long the team could hold on with Bridgewater under center until Brees could return.
Bridgewater and company completely erased that narrative as the team has gone 5-0 since losing Drew Brees in Week 2. Now, despite having the second-best record in the NFC, the Saints appear to be in the driver’s seat for home-field advantage in the conference.
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All week there have been discussions of whether or not the Saints should start Drew Brees in Week 8. Brees is ahead in his rehab and stated early in the week that his plan was to start on Sunday.
Nothing has officially been announced by the team and Sean Payton even said on Friday that the decision would be made on Sunday morning before the game.
Saint fans do not have to wait until Sunday morning to find out if their franchise quarterback is going to start, as Dianna Russini and Ed Werder of ESPN reported that Brees would start on Sunday against the Arizona Cardinals.
This means that Brees’ injury only kept him out of action for five weeks instead of six and that he will not be getting the extra week of recovery time with the bye week. By starting this game, Brees is essentially sacrificing two weeks of recovery time.
The Arizona Cardinals present Brees and company a tougher task than fans may realize. The Cardinals rank fourth in the league in total sacks and are led by Chandler Jones, who has recorded 8.5 sacks in seven games this season.
Arizona has won its last three games to move to 3-3-1 on the season, albeit the three teams were weaker opponents in the Cincinnati Bengals, Atlanta Falcons and New York Giants.
Next. Drew Brees' return brings back another weapon as well. dark
The New Orleans Saints’ offensive line is going to have their hands full in this game and is going to need to tighten up even more with a less mobile quarterback that is coming off of injury.