Drew Brees is set to miss consecutive games for the second straight season after being placed on injury reserve by the New Orleans Saints on Friday. Whether he misses the three-game minimum will be determined by the severity of his rib injuries, which turned out to be much more fractured than initial tests showed.
Brees has 11 broken ribs instead of the five shown in the first test, eight on the left side and three on the right, according to ESPN’s Ed Werner. Most people have 24 ribs, 12 of which are on each side of the body. Brees also has a collapsed lung, but says doctors have been encouraged by his progress in lung function over the past few days.
The Saints quarterback believes the rib injuries to his left side occurred in a Week 9 loss to the New Orleans Saints, while the right side injuries occurred during the week 10 vs. San Francisco 49ers – when he told Saints head coach Sean Payton he couldn’t leave because of the injury. Brees believes he may be ready to play as soon as he is eligible to return from the injured reserve – which would be Week 14 against the Philadelphia Eagles.
“His knowledge of what we’re doing offensively (and) his expertise – is invaluable,” Payton said of Brees on Friday. “He’s got big eyes and really good insight. It’s obviously like having another coach. And last year when that happened it wasn’t because he was doing scans. And so I think it might have been week 2 that he joined us, but yeah that’s a big deal. “
New Orleans chose to start Taysom Hill against Jameis Winston for Sunday’s game against the Atlanta Falcons. Hill threw just 18 assists in his NFL career.
