It has been a few years since we saw legendary quarterback Drew Brees leading the New Orleans Saints. He retired after the team lost in the 2021 playoffs, spending the last two seasons as an analyst.
However, if Drew Brees had better luck, he would still be out there playing. There are a few franchises that have reached out and sent feelers about coming back to play, but he recently revealed that isn’t physically possible for him.
Earlier this week, when making an appearance on ESPN Radio’s Greeny Show, Drew Brees revealed that he can no longer throw a football. When teams called trying to lure him out of retirement, he informed them that he can no longer throw a football with his right arm because of an injury that occurred in 2005.
That same injury is what made some teams hesitant to sign him in free agency when he signed a massive deal with the Saints. It didn’t end up costing him during his playing days, but in retirement, it has changed his life.
When throwing the football around in his yard, Drew Brees now uses his left arm. “Look, I’ll let you in on a little fact. I don’t throw with my right arm anymore. My right arm does not work. So, when I throw in the backyard right now, I throw left-handed, Brees said during an appearance at a Pickleball tournament with John McEnroe. “Look, I’ll let you in on a little fact. I don’t throw with my right arm anymore. My right arm does not work. So, when I throw in the backyard right now, I throw left-handed.”
The shoulder injury that he suffered, in his words, “put me on the fast track to a degenerative shoulder and all kind of arthritic changes.” If he was able to use his right arm any longer, he said he would still be playing in the NFL.
Drew Brees also said that the concerns of the Miami Dolphins, who originally signed him before the Saints did, were legitimate. But, Dr. James Andrews, who was the one who did the shoulder surgery on Drew Brees, was able to provide the future Hall of Famer with guidance on how to do things in the short term to prolong his career.
Andrews will certainly be part of the Hall of Fame speech Drew Brees eventually gives as he was able to play 15 years with the Saints. In his career, he threw for 80,358 yards, 68,010 of which came with New Orleans.
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