Drew Brees Reveals Why New Orleans Saints Will Be 'Really Good' in 2022 (Exclusive)

Drew Brees will be two seasons removed from the NFL when the 2022 season begins in September. And while the New Orleans Saints aren't the same team without Brees, the legendary quarterback believes they can be contenders this year. In an exclusive interview with PopCulture.com, Brees explained why the Saints will be a strong quad despite not having Sean Payton as the head coach. 

"I think they're going to be really good," Brees exclusively told PopCulture. "I think they've got a lot of explosive firepower on offense. I think defensively, they've got incredible leadership and really great talent as well. I think DeMario Davis as the leader of that defense and Cam Jordan, guys that played a lot of football been there a long time, I think they've been holding that down for quite a while now. And you add pieces like Tyrann Mathieu and some others, those guys are going to be stout. I mean, I just think there's an attitude there that they feel like they can stop anybody and they can."

Last year, the Saints finished the season with a 9-8 record and just missed out on the playoffs. It was the first time since the 2016 season New Orleans didn't finish first in the NFC South as they finished second behind the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. One issue the Saints had was the quarterback position because Jamies Winston suffered an ACL injury midway through the 2021 season. During the offseason, Winston signed a two-year contract extension with the Saints after throwing for 1,170 yards, 14 touchdowns and three interceptions in seven games last year. 

USA Today recently released its predictions for the 2022 NFL season and said the Saints will finish with a 9-8 record. However, instead of missing the playoffs, New Orleans will get into the postseason as the No. 7 seed. Despite losing Payton, the Saints have enough weapons on both sides of the ball to get back in the playoff mix. 

"I think they're poisoned ready," Brees said. "Sean Peyton obviously stepped away this off-season. Dennis Allen, who was the defensive coordinator there, is now the head coach. I think he'll do a great job. So I think all in all they're poised to have a lot of success."