The New Orleans Saints have benefitted from the rise of Drew Brees over the years, but suddenly one injury has the quarterback's future in doubt. Brees has struggled over the past two seasons with the offensive weapons in New Orleans as the unit has lacked some explosiveness from years past. Now with a shoulder injury that may or may not be severe, Brees is dealing with doubt regarding his future in the franchise.
According to ESPN's Ed Werder, Brees has a bruised rotator cuff which was confirmed by Dr. James Andrews who noted that there was no structural damage or tears in the area. Brees is listed as questionable for Week 3 as the team remains hopeful he will play. So why are the alarms sounding on the quarterback's future?
Bleacher Report's Jason Cole is reporting that the Saints are leaning towards not extending Brees' contract once it expires in 2016. Cole reports that sources confirm there is lingering doubt that Brees will ever be 'elite' again as he will be 37 when his contract expires in 2016. Over the past two seasons, Brees has not shown the same arm strength as he did when the Saints won the Super Bowl and the team is considering not re-signing him to any kind of a long-term contract.
It is simply too early to sound the alarm on Brees considering his injury is just a bruise. He could easily step out in Week 3 and break a passing record. Brees has faced doubt about his future before. During the offseason when New Orleans was dumping salary cap space, many believed the quarterback was available for trades. Head coach Sean Payton stepped out and denied that idea, but the talk was there. It is no surprise it has popped up again with the shoulder injury and given the quarterback's age, no one would doubt it from being true, but do not expect a decision on Brees any time soon.
For now, the Saints are prepared to move forward with Luke McCown if Brees were to miss time on the field. McCown is really the only option in New Orleans. The journeyman has played in 12 preseason games since 2013 with a 64 percent completetion rate. He has 10 touchdowns and two interceptions. The run game will be very important if McCown is in. Mark Ingram will need to improve while CJ Spiller must get more involved. Khiry Robinson will also see a lot of playing time.
