It’s Brees vs. Brady 1 more time
Drew Brees periodically discusses his long, extraordinary NFL journey in terms of fate and destiny.
The Saints quarterback says, for example, that his career-threatening throwing shoulder injury at the end of the 2005 season was meant to be. It precipitated his departure from the Chargers and move to New Orleans, where he shattered passing records and won a Super Bowl — all while helping rebuild a beloved American city that was reeling from Hurricane Katrina’s devastation.
So when six-time Super Bowl winner Tom Brady decided to leave the Patriots and begin a new chapter with the Buccaneers, in the NFC South, Brees couldn’t escape the sense that he’d see Brady in a high-stakes game in January.
This rare postseason matchup of record-setting quarterbacks older than 41 is set for Sunday night, when the Saints (13-4) host the Buccaneers (12-5) in the divisional round of the NFC playoffs.
“Listen, when Tom Brady signed with the Bucs and I knew that he was coming to our division, I envisioned this game,” Brees asserted this week. “I envisioned this game happening because I knew our aspirations as a team, to be in the playoffs and beyond. And I certainly knew what he was bringing to the Bucs and that talented roster.”
Similarly, Brady figured that success in Tampa Bay would hinge on how he and Buccaneers handled their encounters with the Saints.
“They’ve been one of the top teams in the league for a long time and they’ve had some tough playoff losses (on) some really fluke plays,” Brady said, referring to a last-second loss to the Vikings on a long passing play two seasons ago, and an admitted officiating blunder that helped the Rams beat the Saints in the NFC title game two seasons ago.
“Other than that, there’s not a lot of bad about” the Saints, Brady said. “They’re pretty spectacular.”
Brees and Brady have been doing “spectacular” for two decades now. No wonder there’s so much buildup for this game.
“We were texting back and forth on Monday just kind of chuckling at this whole scenario,” Brees, who was turning 42 on Friday, said of an exchange he had with the 43-year-old Brady. “That’s 85 years and a lot of football experience that’s going to be on the field on Sunday.”
Getting closer: Browns All-Pro defensive end Myles Garrett acknowledged “I’m due” after going without a sack in consecutive weeks against the Steelers.
While he finished sixth in the league with 12 sacks in the regular season, Garrett has recorded 2 ½ sacks in the six games he’s been back since a tough bout with COVID-19.
“You just have to know that your time will come,” Garrett said Friday in reference to going without a sack in last weekend’s 48-37 wild-card victory at Pittsburgh. “I got close a couple times, but like I said before, I’m due.”
As the Browns (12-5) visit the defending Super Bowl champion Chiefs (14-2) for an AFC divisional game Sunday, Garrett hopes to return to his game-changing ways and relishes the chance to face quarterback Patrick Mahomes.
“He’s kind of regarded as the face of the league right now. He goes right up there with [Rams defensive tackle] Aaron Donald as the two faces that people see as the best on offense and defense,” Garrett said of Mahomes on Zoom.
“I want him to be able to go home when he has his kid or kids and tell them he went against Myles Garrett. It’s not just me versus him, it’s the Browns versus the Chiefs. But individually I like to leave an impression on everybody I go against.”
In 2020, Garrett recorded four stripsacks, all coming in Browns’ victories, and tied for third in the league in that category. He wants to make that kind of impact in Arrowhead Stadium.
“This would be the game to do it, going against one of the best teams in the league if not the best team in the league,” he said. “They’ve got to go in there and they’ve got to prove it and we’ve got to prove we can battle with anybody.”
Peters fined: Ravens cornerback Marcus Peters was fined $15,000 by the NFL for unsportsmanlike conduct and “physical actions directed at the Titans bench” in last week’s 20-13 wild-card-round win, according to a league source.
After recording a late interception with under two minutes remaining, Peters led several defensive players onto the Titans logo. Peters spun the ball on the logo and gestured in the direction of the Titans bench, while other teammates stomped on the logo, imitating a pregame confrontation Titans players had with coach John Harbaugh in the Week 11 meeting between the teams. The Ravens were flagged 15 yards for taunting.
Defensive end Derek Wolfe said after the game that the act “wasn’t a disrespect thing. It was more like a team unity thing.”
It’s the second fine for Peters in the last month. He was fined $12,500 for unsportsmanlike conduct for spitting in the direction of Browns wide receiver Jarvis Landry during the teams’ Week 14 meeting.