New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees wants to play into his 40s

Drew Brees was the third oldest starting QB heading into the 2013 season, trailing only Tom Brady and Peyton Manning. (Al Tielemans/SI)

When Drew Brees suffered a nasty shoulder dislocation that required offseason surgery during the San Diego Chargers season finale in 2005, there were concerns the pending free-agent-to-be might not return as the same quarterback.

In the end he wasn't as Brees grew into an even better player upon signing with the New Orleans Saints, breaking multiple NFL passing records in the process.

Now 13-years into his career, the veteran doesn't believe he's going to be slowing down anytime in the near future, recently suggesting that he'd like to play into his 40s.

"Do I hope I can play into my 40s? Yes, I do. As long as I'm healthy and playing at a high level, then why not?" Brees added. "I certainly don't take it for granted and know that obviously you've got to prove yourself every year."

Brees, 35, still has three years remaining on his current contract, and while he hasn't replicated some of the historic seasons he produced during his early seasons with the Saints, the former Purdue star is still putting up Pro Bowl numbers with relative ease.

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Outside of a handful of missed games in 2003 (and the aforementioned shoulder dislocation), Brees has had an extremely healthy career, only missing one game since the 2004 season. Assuming his health continues to maintain that course, there's not much reason to believe Brees can't accomplish his goal.

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