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The New Orleans Saints offense is far from pretty without Drew Brees. As the season winds down and the Saints try to hang onto the No. 1 seed in the NFC, the Packers are still hot on their tails. With that in mind, although the Saints are 3-0 with Taysom Hill at the helm, fans are itching to get Brees back under center.
Brees is now eligible to come off of the injured reserve after cracking 11 ribs and puncturing a lung, which is good news for New Orleans. However, with a game upcoming against the Philadelphia Eagles before a Week 15 showdown with the seemingly unstoppable Kansas City Chiefs, they’re taking their time.
According to Ian Rapoport, Brees will continue to be limited in practice as he continues his rehab. While he may get some reps this week, and the Saints could ramp him up on Thursday as needed, there doesn’t seem to be much urgency.
#Saints QB Drew Brees, progressing well in his rehab from a lung puncture & fractured ribs, won’t practice much, if at all, today, I’m told. He’s eligible to come off IR now. They could ramp him up Thursday to see how he feels, but a more realistic target to play has been W15.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) December 9, 2020
With this in mind, don’t expect to see Brees taking reps against the Eagles. Although there’s very little room for error in the NFC playoff picture, the last thing the Saints want is to rush Brees out before he’s ready.
While this leaves the door open for a Patrick Mahomes vs Brees showdown, the wording hardly makes it look like a surefire thing. With that being said, if there’s one thing we learned last season, it’s that as soon as Brees is ready we’ll see him on the field again. Just ask the Cardinals.