Drew Brees Comments on Jimmy Graham Trade, Addition of Max Unger

The New Orleans Saints' decision to trade tight end Jimmy Graham to the Seattle Seahawks this offseason shocked the football world, and it turns out that it had the same effect on quarterback Drew Brees and his teammates as well.

In his first comments since the deal, Brees told WWL Radio in New Orleans that the deal took all the players by surprise, according to ESPN.com's Pat Yasinskas.

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I think it shocked all of us. A lot of crazy things happened, though, during the course of free agency for a lot of different teams. Unfortunately, you've been around long enough, you see some of these things happen at times. If anything it shows the confidence our organization has in the young players, especially the young skill players on offense, just feeling like those are guys that now have a chance to step up and fill a big void and fill a big role and continue to progress forward.

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The nine-time Pro Bowl quarterback also discussed how difficult it will be both on the field and off the field without someone of Graham's caliber in the fold.

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Jimmy was like a brother to me. He was close to so many guys on the team. That part of it is something that people lose track of. As a football player, he's a rare, rare talent. Not having a guy like that on the field with you is a difference-maker. Just the relationships that you build in the locker room, that's really the part that's the hardest, just because you're used to being around each other and the way your families do things together. You build a relationship and you become very close. But then, things happen and all of the sudden you're on a different team. It doesn't change the way we feel about each other. We're just not going to see each other all that often.

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New Orleans didn't come away from the trade empty-handed, as it landed a first-round pick as well as center Max Unger. As disappointed as Brees is to be without Graham, he seems equally excited to have Unger snapping the ball to him, per Yasinskas.

"I was with him in Pro Bowl a few years ago and I think he's a very good player," Brees said. "I know he was hit by the injury bug a little bit last year. But obviously he can play at a high level. He's still very much in the prime of his career. I feel like he'll be a great addition to that front five."

Head coach Sean Payton is among those who believe the Saints could be better off moving forward after the trade, according to PFT on NBCSN:

The Saints were hugely disappointing last season, so it stands to reason that the organization felt as though it needed to make a big move in order to move in the right direction.

Dealing Graham qualifies as a massive change, and as surprising as it was, it could prove to be a positive decision.

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