Drew Brees Reveals Past Close Call Between Saints, Dolphins

The New Orleans Saints have had a huge week as a franchise.

While the Saints weren't in the Super Bowl, franchise legend Drew Brees was selected as a member of the Class of 2026 to enter the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Brees and the Saints go hand in hand, but there was a time when it wasn't guaranteed he would come to town after exiting from the San Diego Chargers.

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Brees joined the "Dan Patrick Show" and revealed how close he was to actually joining the Miami Dolphins at the time.

The Saints legend opened up

Oct 5, 2025; New Orleans, Louisiana, USA; Former New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees smiles prior to the game against the New York Giants at Caesars Superdome. Mandatory Credit: Matthew Hinton-Imagn Images | Matthew Hinton-Imagn Images

"I remember everything about that trip to Miami," Brees said. "Again, on paper, I'm coming off the major shoulder injury. Not sure if I'll ever play football again, but hopeful. It's the New Orleans Saints and the Miami Dolphins. On paper, this was the easiest decision in the world. It's the Miami Dolphins all the way. Nick Saban is the head coach, he's done an outstanding job with that defense, one of the best defenses in the league, Zach Thomas, Jason Taylor, they had finished that previous season winning seven in a row. Really the only question mark for their team was quarterback. Had skill position guys. Jason Garrett was the quarterbacks coach. Mike Mularkey was the OC. They were running the same offensive system that I was coming from in San Diego. ...

"At the end of the day, Nick Saban looked me in the eye and said 'Our doctors think you have a 25 percent chance of ever coming back and playing again.' I was like, 'I know what they say, what do you think?' He was like, 'I've got to believe what the doctors are telling me, you know. We still want you, I'm just letting you know what's been said.' I just didn't really get the feeling that they had a ton of faith and confidence in my ability to come back.

"Despite how good that visit was and how much respect I have for the organization and everything, the Saints were a totally different story from the perspective of, look we know that city was destroyed, but Sean Payton and Mickey Loomis had this unwavering belief in me to be their guy."

Obviously, that would've completely changed the trajectory of both franchises. Fortunately, this is in the past and you can't change it. Brees came to town and the rest is history.

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