New Orleans Saints

New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees has elected to undergo surgery to repair his torn thumb ligament, according to Adam Schefter of ESPN. 

He is expected to miss six weeks with the injury but the timetable won't be known until after Wednesday's surgery is complete.

Brees suffered the injury in the second quarter of Sunday's game against the Los Angeles Rams and he wasn't able to return.

The Fox broadcast showed him unable to pick up a football in the second half:

Hard to watch Brees try to grip the football after his hand injury

(via @NFLonFOX)pic.twitter.com/nYe8yT9q4z

— B/R Gridiron (@brgridiron) September 15, 2019

This type of extended injury is a new problem for Brees, who hasn't missed more than one game in a season since 2003. The quarterback only missed three games in the first 13 years he spent in New Orleans, two of them for rest in Week 17 before the playoffs.

Now he will likely be out at least through the bye in Week 9, hurting the Saints' chances of reaching the playoffs one year after reaching the NFC Championship Game.

Teddy Bridgewater took over for Brees in Week 2 and would presumably handle the starting role until the starter is able to return. Taysom Hill could also play the position on a part-time basis.

While Bridgewater does have 29 games of starting experience in his career, his presence is a major drop-off from the future Hall-of-Fame quarterback.

It has been many years since we saw the real Teddy Bridgewater.   

The version of Bridgewater we saw Sunday—rushed out of the bullpen on the road against the defending NFC champions and asked to execute a game plan that wasn't designed for him after Drew Brees tore a ligament in his thumb—wasn't the real one. Bridgewater dinked and dunked, rarely threw downfield, saw big offensive plays erased by penalties and game-changing defensive turnovers negated by officiating flubs, and was utterly unimpressive in a dreary 27-9 loss to the Rams.

The version we saw in the preseason wasn't the real one either. That was a veteran understudy, executing vanilla game plans sometimes behind a backup offensive line. And the version we saw go through the motions with a makeshift supporting cast, throwing for just 118 yards in a meaningless, unwatchable Week 17 game last year? Not the real one.

There may have been some flashes of the real Bridgewater during the 2018 Jets preseason, but really, who remembers anything about the 2018 Jets preseason?

Even the successful 2014-15 Vikings version of Bridgewater wasn't the real thing. That guy was simply a Vikings quarterback. Vikings quarterbacks under head coach Mike Zimmer are interchangeable. Their job is to hand off and avoid mistakes. Bridgewater was great at being that quarterback, better than the guy the Vikings paid $84 million to ultimately replace him. But he threw for just 28 touchdowns in two seasons as a starter, spending most of his Sundays feeding Adrian Peterson, checking down to Stefon Diggs, preserving victories by 20-13 final scores and hoping the kicker didn't choke away playoff losses.

The real Teddy Bridgewater was Teddy Ballgame.

Teddy Ballgame was something of a cross between Carson Wentz and Dak Prescott for Louisville in 2012 and 2013. He could make anything happen. He was a master of the deep sideline teardrop and the improbable throw from an imploding pocket. A gutsy escape artist. A never-say-die playmaker who lit up the highlight reels.

Then the Vikings drafted him 32nd overall in the 2014 draft, and Zimmer and old-school coordinator Norv Turner tried to transform him into the ultimate game manager, the type of quarterback who goes 17-of-24 in a 10-9 playoff loss, as Bridgewater did at the end of his second season. Heading into the next year, hopes were high that he could become something more—but then came a gruesome, freakish preseason practice leg injury that jeopardized his career and erased nearly all of two seasons.

Bridgewater returned just in time for the Vikings to decide they were one quarterback away from the Super Bowl and that somehow Kirk Cousins was that quarterback. He signed with the Jets, was traded to the Saints and turned down an offer from the Dolphins this offseason (wise move) to remain in New Orleans in the dual role of inexpensive journeyman backup and kinda-sorta quarterback of the future behind what appeared to be a nigh-indestructible Hall of Famer.

It was a long, difficult journey. But Bridgewater is still only 26 years old, and with Brees expected to miss six weeks after undergoing thumb surgery, he may finally get a chance to unleash Teddy Ballgame on the NFL.

This is as close to an ideal situation as a backup quarterback can find himself in. Bridgewater gets to throw to Michael Thomas, one of the NFL's best receivers. He gets to hand off and dump off to Alvin Kamara, one of the league's best all-purpose backs. He'll play behind an offensive line built to exacting "protect Drew Brees at all costs" specifications. He has the benefit of a Saints defense that, while rickety in the secondary, gets the job done. In Sean Payton, he has one of the league's best game-planners. And he's had an entire year in the system to absorb the playbook.

At the same time, expectations are astronomical. The Saints entered the season as Super Bowl contenders who felt robbed by the refs in the NFC Championship Game last year. Brees is the NFL's all-time leader in all sorts of important categories, and over the last 13 years he led the Saints and their fans from the all-too-real-world tragedy of Hurricane Katrina to Super Bowl glory to an extended run as perennial contenders. Even Tom Brady hasn't been as singularly responsible for his team's success as Brees has been.

Managing a few games until Brees returns and keeping the Saints from falling out of the wild-card picture would be enough for most backup quarterbacks. For Bridgewater, it would be a lost opportunity. For the Saints, it could herald the end of an era.

Bridgewater could be in line for a huge contract extension and a chance to reclaim the chance at superstardom that was taken from him when he was carted off a practice field in 2016—if he can become Teddy Ballgame again. The version of Bridgewater we saw Sunday, in the preseason and in Week 17 last year? Some rebuilding team would probably sign him for a year or two while it grooms a rookie.

The real fear for both the Saints and for Bridgewater is that Teddy Ballgame is gone forever and the other guy is now the "real" Bridgewater.

It's a fear born not just of the 2016 injury, the lost seasons or an old Vikings highlight reel full of routine throws that your basic Ryan Tannehill-type quarterback can execute, but of the fact that even during his collegiate glory years, Bridgewater wasn't as big, rifle-armed or fast as the typical top prospect. He wasn't as gifted as Blake Bortles or Johnny Manziel, who were both drafted before him. He proved to be far more reliable than they were (now there's an understatement), but do you know what happens to the "reliable" young quarterback who loses a little bit of athleticism to injury and a little bit of boldness to years of conservative game plans, rehab and proving that he once again belongs on a roster? That's right: He becomes a gutsy journeyman backup quarterback.

Bridgewater needs to shed his play-it-safe checkdown habits, trust his health, talents and teammates, and rediscover what he is capable of.

Payton, Thomas, Kamara and the rest of the Saints need to do their part as well.

The Saints need the real Bridgewater. An NFL full of starting quarterbacks named Gardner Minshew II and Jacoby Brissett needs him too.

It's time for the real Bridgewater to return and remind everyone just how special and electrifying he was to watch. He will never get a better chance. It's now or never.

        

Mike Tanier covers the NFL for Bleacher Report. Follow him on Twitter: @MikeTanier.

New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees reportedly will need to undergo surgery after suffering a thumb injury in Sunday's 27-9 loss to the Los Angeles Rams.

Ian Rapoport of NFL Network tweeted Monday morning that "Brees has a torn ligament in his throwing thumb and he's going to require surgery, sources say. The timeframe depends on the surgery, but he's likely out 6 weeks. That's the initial estimate."

Rapoport previously reported Brees met with a specialist Sunday.

Teddy Bridgewater threw for 165 yards without a touchdown or interception as the Saints offense stalled without Brees. Bridgewater, who started one game last season, has not seen much regular-season action since suffering a catastrophic leg injury during the 2016 preseason with the Minnesota Vikings.

Brees has missed only one start because of injury since high school. The 40-year-old told reporters after the game he is "concerned" about his status but did not know the extent of his injury.

"It's all up in the air right now," Brees said. "I really don't know at this point. There's only so much you can do here other than have a doctor look at it on the sideline."

Saints coach Sean Payton told reporters the team did not change its offense much when making the transition from Brees to Bridgewater. Payton also defended Bridgewater, saying the team around him didn't play well.

"He's a pro. He knows how to win in this league," Payton said of Bridgewater, who was 11-5 with the Vikings in 2015. "I didn't think we played particularly well around him. I think when we watch that tape tomorrow, it's not going to be pleasant for some guys."

It's hard to determine how the Saints would look with the 26-year-old getting a full week of practice to prepare, but it's fair to say they'll be taking a hit under center, even if do-everything backup QB Taysom Hill sees more snaps.

When Bridgewater was in Minnesota, he looked like an average NFL starting quarterback; Brees remains among the game's best and is a master of Payton's offense.

New Orleans Saints head coach Sean Payton opted for a more diplomatic tone after his team was on the receiving end of an officiating mistake in Sunday's 27-9 defeat to the Los Angeles Rams.

In the second quarter, Cameron Jordan appeared to return a Jared Goff fumble for a touchdown. However, the referees blew the play dead, ruling the play an incomplete pass. The call was overturned on review, but New Orleans took possession at the 13-yard line rather than getting the six points.

Payton declined to dwell too much on the play, per Pro Football Talk's Charean Williams: "You can't focus... When we get poor officiating or we get an awful call like that, we can't control that. Our focus this week is going to be on cleaning up the penalties and making sure we got the right guys on the field, too."

Jordan was a little less measured in his response:

Cam Jordan said usually you let the play happen, instead of blowing the play dead. Dropped a "Foot Locker" reference when describing the referee. pic.twitter.com/F8J5OfZKAs

— Garland Gillen (@garlandgillen) September 16, 2019

Al Riveron, the NFL's senior vice president of officiating, said the referees went by the rulebook when they spotted the ball at the 13-yard line but that crews are generally instructed to err on the side of caution and be more careful with the whistle:

My postgame chat (again) with NFL officiating head Al Riveron about the fumble/incomplete pass/non Cam Jordan TD. ⁦@TheAthleticNOLA⁩ pic.twitter.com/yrPCTp0yfY

— Larry Holder (@LarryHolder) September 16, 2019

When the Saints kicked off the regular season in Week 1 against the Houston Texans, fans still hadn't forgotten the missed pass interference in the 2019 NFC Championship Game. Exacerbating matters, Riveron admitted the referees from New Orleans' 30-28 win over the Texans made a mistake regarding a clock runoff at the end of the first half.

One week later, yet another contentious call went against the Saints.

At this rate, it's going to be a stressful year in the Big Easy.

New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees left Sunday's 27-9 loss to the Los Angeles Rams with a thumb injury.

Mike Triplett of ESPN noted Brees said he is "concerned" and will see a hand specialist.

Brees was 3-of-5 passing for 38 yards and an interception before he left with the injury. He was replaced by Teddy Bridgewater, who should start under center if Brees winds up missing extended time.

From a fantasy perspective, we can essentially boil this down to one word: nope. 

Subbing Bridgewater for Brees drastically hurts every New Orleans offensive player's value. It's like subbing steak for Spam. You're still technically getting protein, but it isn't the same.

As far as playing Bridgewater, fantasy players would need to be desperate at quarterback. He was inconsistent in Sunday's game, finishing just 17-of-30 for 165 yards, zero touchdowns and zero interceptions.

There is plenty of talent on New Orleans' roster to help with his numbers, but he hasn't taken meaningful snaps since the 2015 season, when he was a member of the Minnesota Vikings.

The outlook trickles down to the Saints' most notable skill-position players, especially star running back Alvin Kamara and wide receiver Michael Thomas.

Much of Kamara's value has come out of the backfield as a sure-handed receiver and playmaker. Without Brees to feed him the ball, Kamara could become more of a typical running back, sharing some carries with Latavius Murray.

Fantasy managers likely selected Kamara with a top-four pick, but he managed only 13 carries for 45 yards and one catch for 15 yards against the Rams. Without Brees under center, opposing defenses can push more players into the box to account for the speedster.

Don't take Kamara out of your starting lineup, but you can't count on him to score 20-plus fantasy points every week if Brees is sidelined.

Michael Thomas will also likely lose targets and production, taking him from one of the best receivers in the league to someone with a lower ceiling. He still managed 10 catches for 89 yards in Sunday's contest, underscoring why he should remain in starting lineups with or without Brees.

But like Kamara, he won't be scoring 20-plus fantasy points on a consistent basis unless the future Hall of Famer returns.

A word of advice for everyone as they start their week: Take cover if you plan on asking New Orleans Saints fans what they think about officiating in the NFL.

The Saints were the victims of another game-changing call against the Los Angeles Rams during Sunday's rematch of the NFC Championship Game. As Josh Alper of Pro Football Talk explained, defensive lineman Trey Hendrickson forced a fumble from Rams quarterback Jared Goff, which Cameron Jordan then scooped up.

Jordan had a clear path to the end zone to give the Saints the lead for the first time in the game, but officials blew the play dead and said it was an incomplete pass. While New Orleans eventually got the ball after head coach Sean Payton successfully challenged the play, it had to start from its own 13-yard line instead of getting credit for Jordan's touchdown.

The Saints recovered the football on this play and ran it back to the end zone, but the play was blown dead. pic.twitter.com/s2ur9YSOie

— FOX Sports: NFL (@NFLonFOX) September 15, 2019

"The Saints are on the short end of another call yet again... How many times can this happen to the @Saints. Unbelievable." - Joe @Buck pic.twitter.com/FN4o8dQNJP

— FOX Sports: NFL (@NFLonFOX) September 15, 2019

The best course of action for officials in that scenario is almost always to let the play finish and then go back and review it. That way, the defense can have the return if it was a fumble instead of feeling cheated even after forcing a turnover.

Even before this call, Saints fans have every reason to be upset at refereeing in general.

The Saints likely would have been in the Super Bowl last season were it not for a missed call in the NFC Championship Game against the Rams. Drew Brees lofted a pass to Tommylee Lewis in the final minutes of the fourth quarter, but Rams cornerback Nickell Robey-Coleman steamrolled the would-be pass-catcher well before the ball arrived.

A pass-interference call would have allowed the Saints to run the time down and kick a field goal on the final play. Instead, they settled for a field goal much earlier and allowed Los Angeles to force overtime with its own field goal on the ensuing possession.

Thousands of Saints fans arrived at their Week 1 game against the Houston Texans this season dressed as officials and were ready to boo at every whistle.

Best of luck to the refs who are assigned to the next game in New Orleans after another costly mistake went against the Saints on Sunday.

New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees suffered a hand injury in Sunday's 27-9 loss against the Los Angeles Rams that caused him to miss over three quarters.

After the game, Brees said he's "concerned" and is "hoping it's not too significant," adding he will see a hand specialist in Los Angeles, according to Mike Triplett of ESPN.

"It's all up in the air right now," Brees added. "I really don't know at this point. There's only so much you can do here other than have a doctor look at it on the sideline."

Erin Andrews of Fox Sports gave insight into the extent of the injury when Brees did not return to the game:

.@ErinAndrews was told during the half that Drew Brees simply "could not grip the ball."

He is still questionable to return. pic.twitter.com/Ma88LVtLwX

— FOX Sports: NFL (@NFLonFOX) September 15, 2019

Jeff Duncan of The Athletic put the injury in perspective:

Drew Brees has missed one game because of injury in his 13-plus year NFL tenure. He's played with significant injuries before. Not a good sign that Brees is not in there.

— Jeff Duncan (@JeffDuncan_) September 15, 2019

The 40-year-old continues to post excellent numbers. He threw for 3,992 yards, 32 touchdowns and five interceptions in 2018, completing a single-season record 74.4 percent of his passes.

He earned a grade of 94.2 from Pro Football Focus, making him the top-ranked quarterback in the league.

Brees is a 12-time Pro Bowler, was a first-team All-NFL selection by the Associated Press in 2006 and has been named the AP Offensive Player of the Year twice (2008, 2011). He's led the Saints to the postseason seven times, which included winning Super Bowl XLIV over the Indianapolis Colts.

He's also remained durable, missing just three games since he joined the Saints in 2006. That makes any injury that threatens to cost him playing time rare, but also concerning for New Orleans.

It's hard to imagine the Saints being as lethal without their offensive leader. While the team will likely lean even more heavily on running back Alvin Kamara, Michael Thomas will need to come up big to support backup quarterback Teddy Bridgewater.

Most teams aren't equipped to make playoff runs without their starting quarterbacks. Given how productive Brees has been in his career and how familiar he is with Sean Payton's system, the Saints are particularly unequipped to win without him, even if Bridgewater appears to be one of the better backup options in the NFL.

The New Orleans Saints have agreed to a five-year extension for head coach Sean Payton, according to Jay Glazer of Fox.

The 55-year-old has been with the team since 2006, compiling a 119-74 regular-season record with the squad entering Sunday. He also has an 8-6 record in the playoffs, including a Super Bowl title after the 2009 season.

"Payton loves the city, city loves him," Glazer added.

The coach would've been a hot commodity if he was willing to leave New Orleans, with the Dallas Cowboys among the rumored teams interested, but he shut down any speculation last offseason.

"I've got fleur-de-lis tattoos that can't be erased!" Payton said in April, per Josh Katzenstein of NOLA.com.

He said at the time that staying with the Saints was "clearly the plan."

The coach is now tied to the organization through the 2024 season, per Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports.

New Orleans has high expectations for 2019 as one of the favorites to win the Super Bowl at 9-1 entering Week 2, per Caesars. It appears the organization has faith Payton will keep the Saints in contention beyond this year and likely after the 40-year-old Drew Brees retires.

New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees said the officiating error that cost his offense 15 seconds late in the first half of Monday night's 30-28 Week 1 victory over the Houston Texans "can't happen."

The crew reviewed a play to determine if Saints wide receiver Michael Thomas reached the first-down marker, which then required a 10-second runoff. But it incorrectly subtracted the time from the 26-second mark (the time of the review) rather than the 41-second mark (when the play finished).

Brees told reporters:

"I still don't know what the deal was. Someone came up to me in the locker room and acknowledged that a mistake was made, that 10 seconds should not have run off but they should've had 31 seconds left. Instead, we only had 16.

"So, listen, that can't happen. I mean, that's a game-changer, right? We had to kick a 58-yard field goal or whatever it was. ... If we had 15 more seconds, are you kidding me? We're going to get closer. That's a game-changer. That can't happen."

Saints kicker Wil Lutz missed a 56-yard field goal as time expired in the first half, but he got redemption by connecting on a game-winning 58-yard attempt on the final play of the game.

NFL senior vice president of officiating Al Riveron confirmed the timing mistake after the game.

The league office could have dealt with another headache if the Saints didn't pull out the win at home. A borderline roughing-the-kicker penalty was called on New Orleans after Texans kicker Ka'imi Fairbairn missed an extra point with the game tied at 27. He made his second attempt after the penalty.

New Orleans fans, who were already on edge with NFL officials after the shocking pass interference no-call on the Los Angeles Rams' Nickell Robey-Coleman in last season's NFC Championship Game, wouldn't have taken kindly to another controversial loss.

Instead, Brees and the offense used the final 37 seconds of the fourth quarter to drive into field-goal range, setting Lutz up for his heroics at the buzzer.

If Sunday didn't leave you convinced football is officially back, Monday night left no doubt.   

The New Orleans Saints opened their 2019 campaign with a 30-28 victory over the Houston Texans that was secured by a career-long 58-yard field goal from Wil Lutz as time expired: 

Wil Lutz with the 58-yard field goal for the GAME 🦵

Saints put together the game-winning drive with 37 seconds left

(via @NFL)pic.twitter.com/k383k2Sswe

— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) September 10, 2019

The 25-year-old kicker had previously missed a 56-yard attempt to end the first half. 

Lutz's game-winner wasn't even the strangest thing to happen in the game's final minute. Down 27-21, the Texans needed just two plays to even the contest when Deshaun Watson found DeAndre Hopkins for a 38-yard strike and Kenny Stills for 37 yards and a touchdown with 37 seconds remaining:

DESHAUN DIMES IT TO KENNY STILLS

TEXANS LEAD 28-27

(via @thecheckdown)pic.twitter.com/gzQA4FSIGP

— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) September 10, 2019

Texans kicker Ka'imi Fairbairn missed the extra point but was given a second try, which he converted, due to a roughing-the-kicker penalty on Chauncey Gardner-Johnson. 

Houston's 28-27 lead was then rendered meaningless by Drew Brees, who drove the Saints 35 yards in 35 seconds to set up Lutz's attempt with two seconds remaining in regulation.

Houston will likely be more upset about squandering a 14-3 halftime lead, and perhaps nobody was happier to see Lutz's kick sail through the uprights than Gardner-Johnson.