Saints' Drew Brees Downplays Shoulder Injury Amid Limited Practice Participation

New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees remained limited in practice Thursday due to a shoulder injury.

ESPN's Mike Triplett provided more information:  

"The New Orleans Saints quarterback was working off to the side with no pads during the early portion of practice that was open to the media and was officially listed as a limited participant. It is rare for Brees to be limited in practice this late in the week and unclear if that will affect his status for Sunday night's critical NFC South showdown at the Tampa Bay Buccaneers."

Per Triplett, Brees wore Kinesio tape on his right throwing shoulder while leading the Saints to a 26-23 overtime victory against the Chicago Bears last Sunday. When asked about the tape on Wednesday, he said, "I'm 41 years old. I've got a lot of stuff going on. But I just keep ticking."

Brees was also limited Wednesday. When asked about his status that day, the quarterback noted he's been limited on Wednesdays for a few years to give himself ample time for rest before his next game. 

Brees and the Saints have a critical matchup with Tom Brady and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sunday evening, with the winner sitting atop the NFC South perch leading into the second half of the season.

The 5-2 Saints are currently a half-game behind the 6-2 Buccaneers, who are first in the NFC South and second in the NFC standings behind the 6-1 Seattle Seahawks.

A Saints win would give them a head-to-head tiebreaker over the Bucs, who lost to New Orleans 34-23 in Week 1.

Brees, a 20-year veteran, has been with the Saints since 2006. He sat only three games from 2006-18, and two were due to rest in Week 17 prior to a playoff push.

Brees missed five games in 2019 after suffering a torn right thumb in Week 2 versus the Los Angeles Rams. Teddy Bridgewater took over and won five straight games as a starter before Brees' return. However, Bridgewater is now the Carolina Panthers' starter, which means the Saints would have to pick another option if Brees can't go.

If he is unable to play, then the Saints can turn to Taysom Hill or Jameis Winston.

Hill, who played quarterback at BYU, has been used as the Saints' jack-of-all-trades as a passer, runner, receiver and special teams player. 

Winston, the No. 1 overall pick in the 2015 NFL draft, played with the Bucs for five straight seasons before his contract expired. He signed with the Saints during the offseason after becoming the first player in NFL history to throw at least 30 touchdowns and 30 interceptions in a single season, finishing with 33 scores and 30 picks.