*Note: This is the final post in a series of fictional installments that uses the MCU's Dr. Strange in the Multiverse of Madness as a jumping off point to football "what ifs."
The old quarterback eases into the booth at ESPN Zone and smiles. A writer had offered to bring him to one of Baltimore’s best steakhouses, but he insisted on bringing his entire family here instead. He always vowed they’d come first, and they’re the reason he’s here after so many years in the bayou. He loves New Orleans, but with a rebuild coming, he knew that to live his dream of winning another championship, he’d need to move on.
That’s how Drew Brees ended up a Baltimore Colt.
Back in the 1980s, the Colts franchise considered leaving the city it’s called home since 1953.
“When Elway signed his rookie contract, that really changed the entire trajectory of this franchise,” said Colts owner Jim Irsay, whose father, Bob, was in talks to move the Colts to Indianapolis, Indiana, before John Elway inked a deal that guaranteed him $1.5 million per year over a 7-year period. “It set us up for years to come.”
After years of success without a Lombardi Trophy, Elway led the franchise to its first Super Bowl victory in nearly 30 years in 1998, as the Colts defeated the Packers thanks to Elway’s gutsy running and a Marshall Faulk plunge into the end zone late in the fourth quarter. The next year, with yet another future Hall of Famer in the fold, the Colts won a second straight Super Bowl, this time over the Falcons, prompting Elway to retire and hand the reins to his understudy Peyton Manning.
Manning won a title of his own before passing the baton to Andrew Luck, who in turn took the Colts back to the Big Game with a victory over the Carolina Panthers in Super Bowl 50. But when Luck abruptly retired following the 2018 season, the Colts were left without a true franchise QB for the first time in decades. Philip Rivers, Matt Ryan, and even Carson Wentz tried their hand at bringing one of the NFL’s proudest franchises back to the promised land, but none stuck. The Colts are hoping that this time will be different.
“Drew gives us as good a chance at winning a Super Bowl as we’ve had in a really long time,” said Elway, now general manager of the franchise he quarterbacked for 16 years.
Brees will be flanked by a two-headed backfield receiving monster of Jonathan Taylor and Nyheim Hines. Paired with Michael Pittman, the recently signed JuJu Smith-Schuster, and a still-prime Kenny Golladay, the Colts have the makings of one of the NFL’s elite offenses, the perfect opportunity for Brees to put a bow on a Hall of Famer career.
It still hurts for Brees that he left New Orleans. He was a fixture in the city for 15 years, providing relief in the form of a Super Bowl championship after Hurricane Katrina devastated the city. But with the Saints set to move to more of a downfield passing attack, the short game the team ran to perfection for so long was a better fit elsewhere.
“The city of New Orleans will always be a part of me,” said Brees. “And a piece of me will always belong to the city as well.”
It seems like ancient history, but Brees actually began his career on the West Coast, playing five seasons in the powder blues of San Diego before signing on with New Orleans after a shoulder injury caused the Chargers to look elsewhere for a QB in one of the ill-fated decisions in NFL history.
From there, Brees’ legend began to rise.
It began with a challenge to the then single-season record of 5,084 pass yards that Dan Marino tossed for the undefeated Miami Dolphins in 1984. Then, Brees took the Saints to the promised land after so many years of mediocrity, healing a city’s deep wounds, and being named Sports Illustrated’s “Sportsperson of the Year” in the process. He followed that up with three more seasons of 5000 passing yards. Now he can add to a hall of fame career and make it, quite possibly, a second-tier G.O.A.T. career, behind only recently-retired Tom Brady.
“I’m beyond excited to see what comes next. For the city, for this franchise…. It’s great to be a Colt,” said Brees.
For now, the old quarterback practices his short field passing at one of the arcade games, his oldest son tossing footballs alongside him in friendly competition. Every one of Drew’s tosses hits its intended target, a small opening in a plastic sheet where a wide receiver’s outstretched hands reach for the football.
The old quarterback still has it.
