Drew Brees is no different than any other New Orleans Saints fan these days. He’s watching the team’s quarterback competition from afar and following every pass with interest from his California home.
The Saints legend is as eager as everyone else to see how the training camp battle between Tyler Shough, Spencer Rattler and Jake Haener plays out.
“It's a pretty unique situation, if you just look at the youth across the board,” Brees said Thursday, while in town to promote the NOLA Pickleball Event taking place this weekend at the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center. “Obviously, there was a lot of excitement in drafting Tyler Shough, and I felt like Spencer Rattler did some great things last year. And Jake Haener, his (playing) style, his stature, everything reminds me of a lot of myself. … So we'll see how the competition shakes out. It seems like it's been a pretty eventful camp so far.”
Because of the trio’s lack of experience and the new Saints’ coaching staff’s relative lack of familiarity with each play, Brees said he expects the club to play each quarterback extensively during the preseason. The Saints open the exhibition season Sunday with a game at the Los Angeles Chargers.
“I'm sure the Saints will take a much different approach than most teams do when it comes to starters, mainly the QBs,” said Brees, whose Brees Dream Foundation benefits from the pickleball event's proceeds. “Some teams barely play their QB starters trying to keep healthy for the regular season. But (with) these guys, every rep is so valuable, both in practice and scrimmages. All those (reps) are so valuable just to feel like you're getting game-like reps.”
Saints head coach Kellen Moore has not announced the playing time yet for Sunday’s game. The quarterbacks have alternated reps with the starting unit throughout camp, which began July 23 at the club’s training facility in Metairie.
The Saints traveled to Irvine, California, on Wednesday and were scheduled to conduct their first practice at the University of Cal-Irvine later on Thursday afternoon.
“The fact that you don't have a veteran QB in that room at this point (is unique), and yet you've got a guy like (former NFL quarterback) Kellen Moore, and you've got a great staff of offensive coaches that have a lot of football experience playing experience, I think all these (quarterbacks) are in good hands,” Brees said. “But nonetheless, nothing replaces just real life (game) experience.”