Drew Brees is a well-known quarterback for the NFL’s New Orleans Saints. Since his college time, he has had a respected position in football and received a postgraduate scholarship from the ‘National Football Foundation’ in 2000. It didn’t take him long to go from a popular college football player to a national champion.
After college, he was actually picked by the San Diego Chargers in the 2001 NFL Draft, and it was the beginning of his professional career. Despite suffering a handful of fatal injuries in his early years, he eventually joined the New Orleans Saints.
A quick turn of events aided him in leading his team to multiple wins, finally leading them to ‘Super Bowl XLIV,’ when the Saints defeated the Indianapolis Colts 31-17. Throughout his successful career, Brees has received several awards, including ‘Academic All-American Player of the Year,’ ‘NFL Comeback Player of the Year,’ and ‘Sportsman of the Year’ in 2010 by Sports Illustrated. Brees also broke Marino’s single-season yardage record in 2013, finishing with 5,476 yards via the air.
Childhood and Teenage Years
Drew Christopher Brees was born on January 15, 1979, in Austin, Texas to Eugene Wilson Brees and Meena Ruth. His parents both worked in legal firms; his father was a trial lawyer and his mother was a well-known prosecutor.
His parents divorced when he was seven, and the remainder of his life was spent with both of his parents taking turns raising him. Reid, his younger brother, was likewise affected by a failed marriage.
However, the sad event only served to bring the brothers closer together. Drew also has a half-sister called Audrey, who is the result of his father’s second marriage.
Drew had a difficult relationship with his mother throughout his life, but it started to improve before her death. As a result, her suicide came as a huge surprise to him.
He had a natural talent for sports from the start. His father was a basketball player when he was younger, and his mother was an all-state athlete in high school. Marty Akins, his maternal uncle, was a quarterback for the ‘Texas Longhorns.’
Educational Background
He went to ‘St. Andrew’s Episcopal School’ and was interested in basketball, baseball, and football. However, after leading the ‘Westlake High School’ football team to a 16-0 triumph and state title, football grabbed most of his interests.
He wanted to follow in his uncle’s footsteps but was not chosen by the ‘Texas Longhorns.’ He later attended Purdue University, where he earned a degree in Industrial Management in 2001.
He did, however, have a glamorous career as a university player. In his second year with the ‘Boilermakers,’ he was taught by Joe Tiller, and despite garnering great accolades, he elected to finish his senior year rather than enter the NFL Draft.
It was because to his efforts that the ‘Boilermakers’ won the ‘Big Ten Championship’ for the first time in thirty years. His four interceptions and the last 64-yard touchdown throw will live on in the minds of American football fans forever.
Career
San Diego Chargers Career
He started his professional career with the ‘San Diego Chargers’ after being selected in the 2001 NFL Draft. On November 4, 2001, he made his debut against the Kansas City Chiefs.
He started the 2004 season with 15 games and helped his side to a 12-4 triumph. After a decade, the squad won the ‘AFC West’ championship and was an easy pick for the ‘2004 Pro Bowl.’
Even after becoming a free agent, he continued to produce regularly. Unfortunately, he tore his labrum in 2005 and had arthroscopic surgery.
New Orleans Saints Career
Brees left the ‘San Diego Chargers’ after not obtaining a raise in money, and subsequently joined the ‘New Orleans Saints,’ signing a six-year, sixty-million-dollar deal on March 14, 2006.
The great quarterback had a very productive first year. Even after dealing with the devastation of ‘Hurricane Katrina,’ the squad managed to win and take the ‘NFC South Division’ championship.
He was chosen as the starting quarterback for the ‘2007 Pro Bowl’ after collecting 4418 passing yards and 26 touchdowns.
2007 seemed to be a similar year for him, as he scored 28 touchdowns and accumulated 4,423 passing yards. In 2008, he ended with 5,069 yards, becoming just the second quarterback in NFL history to do so.
Drew’s strong performance during his six-year deal ensured a renewal, and on July 13, 2012, the ‘New Orleans Saints’ gave him a five-year contract for $100 million, the biggest sum ever given to a player in the NFL.
On October 4, 2015, he delivered a fantastic 80-yard touchdown throw to C.J. Spiller, which helped the team win 26-20 against the Dallas Cowboys. He became the fifth player in NFL history to achieve 400 touchdowns and is currently regarded as the quickest person to do it. Later that year, in just 215 games, he hit the 60,000-yard mark. That year, he set a record with 96 consecutive 300-yard games.
He finished the 2016 season with a completion rate of 70%, but his club failed to make the playoffs despite his excellent performance of 5,208 throwing yards.
Achievements and Awards
He was a nominee for the ‘Davey O’Brien Award’ for top national quarterback player in 1999. He earned the Maxwell Award for ‘Nation’s Outstanding Player’ the following year.
He was fourth in the Heisman Trophy voting in 1999 and third in 2000. During his NCAA football career, he was awarded the ‘Big Ten Medal of Honor’ three times.
His institution honored him with the ‘Purdue’s Leonard Wilson Award’ for his dedication and selflessness. Later that year, he was inducted into the ‘Purdue University Intercollegiate Athletics Hall of Fame.’
Drew was named co-chair of the ‘Council of Fitness, Sports, and Nutrition’ with gymnast Dominique Dawes by US President Barack Obama in 2010.
Drew entered ‘Super Bowl XLIV’ in 2009 with much confidence and went on to play the Indianapolis Colts in the final after a string of victories. He led his team to a 31-17 triumph and was named the ‘Super Bowl Most Valuable Player’ that season.
Who is Drew Brees’ Wife?
Brees married his college classmate Brittany Dudchenko in 2003. They are the parents of three boys and one girl. Brylen is the oldest, followed by Bowen, Callen, and their daughter, Rylen. He is now residing in New Orleans, Louisiana.
Drew is a philanthropist who has given generously to several charity groups. He has even established his own charity, the ‘Brees Dream Foundation,’ to assist cancer sufferers and to encourage further cancer research.
He made a commercial arrangement with ‘Chili’s Grill & Bar’ in 2008 and participated in the ‘Pro Sports Team Challenge’ to raise money for charity, and he also starred in the anti-bullying film ‘It Gets Better.’