Drew Brees Told Saints He Planned to Retire After 2019 Season, According to Report

Drew Brees is off to a strong start to the 2020 season as he led the New Orleans Saints to a big win over Tom Brady and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sunday. However, the former Super Bowl MVP came close to not playing this season. According to Adam Schefter of ESPN, Brees told the Saints that he was going to retire back in February after the Pro Bowl. When Brees left the Pro Bowl, which was in Orlando, Florida, he met with multiple television networks for a broadcasting job.

When Brees had more time to think about things, he changed his mind and decided to play. However, Schefter said the Saints weren't sure about the future of Brees until the second week in March. Once the Saints knew Brees was coming back, they signed him to a two-year $50 million deal. The interesting thing is Brees went to Instagram in mid-February to announce he was returning, stating, "Let's make another run at it." With all this, does it mean Brees will call it a career after the 2020 season?

In April, Saints head coach Sean Payton indicated Brees will retire after this year. "The unique situation with our team and our quarterback Drew Brees is he's announced he's coming back for his final season," Payton said on ESPN Get Up. He would then later say he's a "big dummy" for saying that, while also adding he doesn't know when Brees will retire.

"I have never been in the situation where I was mulling over the thought of [returning]," Brees said to NFL Network's Jane Slater during the Pro Bowl. "To me, each one of these contracts, I don't know how many it's been with the Saints, I've played with them 14 years, it's not a matter of if it gets done, it's when. At this stage of my career, it's not a given that I'm coming back every year, but when that time comes, I'll always be a Saint."

If Brees does retire after this season, there's a job waiting for him. In April, it was reported Brees was going to join NBC Sports and be Cris Collinsworth's replacement for Sunday Night Football. "Like all NFL fans, we look forward to watching Drew continue his Hall of Fame career this fall, and we are confident his post-playing career will be just as successful," NBC Sports spokesman Greg Hughes said to the New York Post.