Highlights from Drew Brees'news conference Thursday.
- Brees expects a lot of uplifting stories regarding the upcoming game against the Falcons on "Monday Night Football," which will be 10 years and a day after the New Orleans Saints played the Falcons on MNF in the game that celebrated the re-opening of the Mercedes-Benz Superdome following Hurricane Katrina. "NFL Films put a nice piece together, talking to a lot of guys – including myself – this offseason," Brees said. "I think at the end of the day, it will highlight a lot of the progress that has been made over the last 10 years here in New Orleans. That part of it is great for the city, it's great for the community, and I think it'll provide for a really unique atmosphere that night. But I'll say the same thing about this game as we did 10 years ago, and this is, you've got to win it. It doesn't mean as much unless you win."
- Already, the next-man-up philosophy is being strained at the seams by the Saints. Starting cornerbacks Delvin Breaux(broken fibula) and P.J. Williams(concussion) won't play Monday night (Williams is on injured reserve), cornerback Damian Swannwas lost before the season began, linebacker Dannell Ellerbehas yet to play and several other players, including left tackle Terron Armstead, have been limited in practice. "There are times when the injury bug hits you in certain ways and guys are required to step up and fill a role that maybe they haven't gotten a whole lot of reps at, and yet, that is the mentality," Brees said. "The train continues to move forward and you want to be one of the people that's helping it to move forward."
- If it benefits the Team Gleason Foundation, you can rest assured that Brees is going to be supportive. He conducted his news conference wearing a hat that read "The Rebirth." Said Brees: "New Era came out with this to honor the rebirth and this anniversary. This hat becomes available at the New Era store on Canal Street (on Friday), and all the proceeds from the hat go to Team Gleason."
