NEW ORLEANS — It’s hard to imagine a Saints team without Drew Brees.
He did miss nine games over the past two seasons, but to truly remember what the Saints looked like before Brees, you’d have to go back to the 3-13 team of 2005.
Home games at Giants Stadium, Tiger Stadium and the Alamo Dome in San Antonio in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina and a very uncertain future of the franchise.
But things started looking up in January when the team hired Sean Payton as head coach. And Payton knew he had a huge hole to fill on the roster.
“Obviously, that’s an important position on any team and if (the quarterback) plays well, that increases your chance of winning,” Payton said during his introductory press conference. “I think it’s far too early to speculate and certainly for myself to speculate our thoughts on the quarterback position.”
Two months later, the Saints had their man.
The Saints handed the former Charger and almost-Dolphin QB a 6-year, $60 million deal to lead the team. That wouldn’t be easy under the circumstances.
“We’ve got a tremendous opportunity to win and to win very quickly,” Brees said. “I know that this town is craving a winner and you’re going to get one.”
That journey would begin largely away from New Orleans once again. This time in Jackson, Miss. for the Saints first training camp under Sean Payton.
It was a grueling one. Full of two-a-days in 100+ degree heat and stifling humidity on a scorching field turf. One of the toughest many players had ever experienced.
Those practices laid the foundation for the success to come.
That team got off to a surprising 2-0 start before the Dome-coming in late September.
Brees, with help from players like Deuce McAllister, Joe Horn, Reggie Bush and rookie Marques Colston, led the saints to their first division title in six years, earned the club’s second-ever playoff victory and a first-ever NFC Championship berth.
Brees and the ‘06 Saints came up short of the Super Bowl in Chicago, but in his first season as QB, Brees laid the groundwork for an unforgettable legacy.
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