Drew Brees

Brees suffered a major dislocated shoulder in 2005 as the Chargers’ quarterback, and it is still impacting him today. The retired 44-year-old said he would still be playing if he could throw with his right arm, but he can only throw with his left due to the shoulder injury’s long-term fallout. Since retiring in 2021, there have been occasional rumors of a return, but at the age of 44, that was already unlikely prior to the revelation that Brees can no longer throw with his right arm.

"Knowing Drew Brees over the years, I do not take seriously his recent social media posts about unretiring to play QB in the NFL," Werder said in a Tuesday Twitter post. Werder confirmed Brees recently underwent left shoulder surgery and wouldn't be ready to take the field until September or October at the earliest. We're confident Brees, 43, will stay retired, and that Jameis Winston will be under center for a revamped New Orleans offense in Week 1. 

Brees, 43, who recently underwent shoulder surgery, said in a Twitter post Sunday that he "may work for NBC, I may play football again, I may focus on business and philanthropy." A source close to the Hall of Fame quarterback told NBC Sports' Peter King that Brees won't return to football two years after he retired from the Saints. Allen said Brees' tweet was probably "made in jest and we certainly haven’t had any conversations in that regard.” Completely unable to push the ball downfield in his final couple seasons with New Orleans, there's almost no chance Brees makes a serious comeback attempt. Jameis Winston will be under center for New Orleans in Week 1. 

Amidst reports that Brees will be one-and-done as King's colleague, Brees himself tweeted that he "may work for NBC, I may play football again, I may focus on business and philanthropy." A source close to Brees told King that the 43-year-old will "(not be) playing football" in 2022. The shoulder surgery can either be viewed as a complication to a potential return or a sign that Brees is actually considering it. We should get to the bottom of it this week. If Brees actually suits up in 2022, somewhere like Seattle or Carolina is probably more likely than his former home New Orleans.