Forty could be the new 35 or so for New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees, who, just like Tom Brady, is giving every indication that he intends to play past the age of 40.
Thursday on the NFL Network's Good Morning Football program, Brees, 38, said that although his career is in its twilight years, he still has more than a couple left in him.
"I got a few more (years) at least," Brees replied when asked how much longer his NFL career would last. "When you first get into the league you think you're invincible, right? You think you're going to last forever. But I understand now, I'm just finishing my 16th season and I'm probably a little closer to the end than I am the beginning. So I just want to create a tremendous sense of urgency for every single year. I don't want to look any further past this year and what's right in front of us. Especially with what we've gone through over the last three years while watching other teams from the NFC South go to the Super Bowl."
While a return to the big game isn't that far out of the question for the Saints, they've gone steadily downhill since winning the Super Bowl in 2009. They've finished 7-9 each of the past three seasons and missed the playoffs, but it certainly hasn't been due to any dip in production on Brees' part.
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He's led the league in passing yards the last three seasons and has thrown for almost 5,000 yards every year since 2011. Couple his enduring physicality with advancements in health science and rules that favor a quarterback's health, and you could easily see Brees playing longer than the next two seasons.
But given his current two-year, $44.25 million deal with New Orleans, which he just signed in September, his career could end elsewhere.
