When Drew Brees arrived in New Orleans for a visit, a pivotal moment shaped his decision to sign for the franchise. On his tour of the city, the Saints kept him away from the areas most devastated by Hurricane Katrina in 2005. But as fate would have it, a wrong turn by Brees’ driver meant he came across an area heavily destroyed by the hurricane. Instead of putting him off, it became the reason why he signed with the ailing New Orleans Saints.

In 2006, like their city, the Saints were devastated. A dismal previous campaign had seen them go 3-13, during which they played their games in San Antonio, having to relocate due to the damage caused by the storm. There were plans to move the franchise permanently away from New Orleans, but everything changed with two key signings and one of them was QB Drew Brees.

In 2010, in an interview with Sports Illustrated, his wife Brittany talked about the moment they came across the wreckage left in the wake of Hurricane Katrina. “As those few days went by, Drew and I felt that maybe we were being called to New Orleans for a reason.” 

But the Bless You Boys still needed one final stroke of luck to get Brees to play for No. 9. Miami Dolphins, a more settled franchise, were vying for him only to be deemed “unapproved” by the physicians. After all, Brees was still coming off a shoulder injury. Looking back, unlike what many doted this to be “hot garbage” and the “worst signing ever,” both Brees and his wife Brittany thought they were being summoned “for a reason.” Brees went on to don the old gold and black for 15 seasons, 12 Pro Bowl selections, and was named the Offensive Player of the Year twice.

Alongside the then-new HC Sean Payton, Brees helped the team transform from basement dwellers to playoff contenders and eventual Super Bowl winners (XLIV). Hence, it came as no surprise when the NFL Throwback’s video on YouTube named him first as part of the franchise’s Mount Rushmore.

In the video, the voiceover perfectly summed up Brees’s impact. “If there’s one player who turned this franchise around, it’s number 9. Drew Brees came to the Big Easy in 2006 when the city needed a rebirth after Hurricane Katrina. Brees led the charge, eventually taking the Saints all the way to the mountaintop in 2009.”

In his first season, the team went 10-6, with Brees leading the Saints to an NFC South title and their first playoff appearance in six years. This performance is largely credited with changing the ownership’s mind and keeping the franchise in New Orleans. The team owner Tom Benson had been on the lookout for a new home for the Saints. Even before Hurricane Katrina damaged the Lousiana Dome, he threatened to uproot the team. He owned property in San Antonio and it was reported that the city was his preferred destination for the team.

But after temporarily playing games in San Antonio in the wake of the hurricane, the team returned to the renovated Superdome in Week 3 of the 2006 season. As they beat Atlanta Falcons 23-3, the fans felt energized by the combination of Drew Brees and HC Sean Payton and they went on to finish the season with an NFC Championship Game appearance, their best-ever season at that point. This was enough to convince Benson that the Saints belonged to the New Orleans.

Brees had 5 crucial seasons in his career where he threw for more than 5,000 yards in a season, going as high as 5,476 yards in the 2011 season. Not only that, but Brees became a trailblazer with his 71,968 passing yards with the New Orleans Saints. He also has 571 pass touchdowns, which is only behind Tom Brady’s 649.

The crowning moment for him and the New Orleans Saints came in 2010 when they won the Super Bowl beating the Indianapolis Colts 31-17. The game saw Brees complete 32 of 39 passes for 288 yards and two touchdowns as he was named Super Bowl MVP.

After playing 20 seasons in the NFL and winning a Super Bowl a decade later after joining the league, Drew Brees has more than earned his place in the upper echelons of the franchise’s greats. But there were other players who stood out for the Saints and found a place on the franchise’s Mount Rushmore.

The list would be incomplete if it didn’t include Rickey Jackson, a DE/LB for the franchise for 12 years. “Many have forgotten how great Rickey Jackson was. Six seasons with 11+ sacks as a member of the famous Dome Patrol defense. Jackson made 6 Pro Bowls, registered the second-most sacks in the franchise history, he trails only this man in that category…” elaborated the video.

However, before we move on from Jackson, it’s important to know about his 115 sacks in his Saints career. Drafted in the fifth round of the 1981 by the Saints, he played 13 of his 15 NFL seasons in New Orleans and racked up 1,104 tackles and 38 forced fumbles, in addition to those 115 sacks. He was also a five-time second-team all-pro and a seven-time pro-bowler and was seen instrumental in lifting the franchise out of its dark days.

The next player on the list wasn’t with the Saints when won their only Super Bowl, but he is currently with the franchise and has surpassed Rickey Jackson for the most number of sacks in the Saints’ history. We are talking about DE Cameron Jordan.

The NFL Throwbacks video described Cam Jordan as someone who, “has wreaked havoc on quarterbacks since coming into the league in 2011. He’s been named 8 Pro Bowls and only trails Brees in total games played with the Saints. Jordan’s been steady throughout his NFL run with more sacks than any player from 2012-2023 and that includes guys like JJ Watt and Von Miller.”

It just so happens that 2011’s 11 overall pick is still playing in the league. 2019 was his season best when he produced 15.5 sacks and 53 total tackles. Overall Jordan has 682 tackles, 117.5 sacks, and 61 passes defended in his 13-year career with the Saints. He is an eight-time Pro-Bowler, three-time All-Pro, and was on the NFL’s 2010 All-Decade team.

The last pro to feature on the list is legendary tackle Willie Roaf. There are very few people who make it to Pro Bowls in 7 consecutive seasons from 1994-2000. The NFL video dubbed him the “best LT in the league.” The 8th overall pick of the 1993 draft out of Louisiana Tech, Roaf, made a huge impact during his eight-year stay with the Saints.

Nicknamed “Nasty,” Roaf was an instant hit and lived up to his billing as a devastating blocker. He started all 16 games in six of his nine seasons in New Orleans, starting all 131 games he played in as a Saint. Apart from making 11 Pro Bowls, Roaf was also part of 11 All-Pro selections. He is one of 25 players ever to make multiple All-Decades teams (1990s, 2000s).

Considering the names and their achievements, it’s all the more remarkable that Drew Brees was the first person to be picked by the NFL on the Saints’s Mount Rushmore. Had it not been for an unfortunate end to his career, he could have even surpassed the legend Tom Brady.

Bad luck that cost Drew Brees 3 more years in the NFL

It all started in his last season with the San Diego Chargers of the time back in 2005. In the finale of that season, Brees suffered a partially torn rotator cuff in his throwing arm and would go on to have surgery a few days later. But the same shoulder was put to the test again in the 2005 season, where he suffered a shoulder rotator cuff tear.

“Honestly, man, if my right arm was still working, I probably would’ve played another three years,” Brees told the media in May this year, having retired in 2020. “My body feels great. My body can play. My right arm can’t. Unfortunately, that’s what kind of forced me to step away. And it was time too.”

The Saints stalwart made his case by saying, “At the end of the day, it’s like, how capable … am I to do the job, right? I would’ve run QB draws. I would’ve done whatever. I would’ve done some veer option. We would’ve pulled out all the stops. I was ready. Pull out the high school playbook,”

Getting injured in the same shoulder over and over made it hard for him to continue. With him being only second to Tom Brady in terms of yardage, it is possible that he could have surpassed the Patriots legend had he played for three more seasons. Still, Drew Brees and others on the New Orleans Saints’ Mount Rushmore will go down as the players who made the franchise what it is today.