Integrity And Humility On The Football Field

When I first heard of the five year, $100 million contract signed by Drew Brees I jokingly said 'I hope it doesn't go to his head'. Off the field it certainly didn't seem to affect Brees but I was worried about his performance.

Very early on I though the mega-money contract put too much pressure on him. I thought in the back of his mind there had to be a little voice saying something like 'Are you really sure you're worth that much money'? Maybe the voice said, 'Who are you kidding? Real 'greats' were never paid this much.'

See where I'm going with this? The first time he missed a pass or threw an interception that little voice must have gotten bigger and said 'told you so'. It's only human to have self-doubts...but to have self-doubts to the tune of $100 million that little voice must get to be huge!

I still thought Drew was one of the best quarterbacks to wear the uniform...any uniform but this past week when he said at age 35 he still had things to learn and would be willing to renegotiate his contract downward to help the Saints with the salary cap so they could recruit new young talent I was convinced he was one of the greats.

At no time have you heard him blame the offense, the defense, the fan base, his receding hairline, or the color of the locker room. Just true humility. No coulda, woulda, shoulda. Just integrity and humility. Something we need more of in sports and in government also.

Can you imagine what it would be like if our political leaders would 'fess up to mistakes with the word 'I' instead of the collective 'we'. New Jersey Governor Chris Christie is a prime example. This past week in his speech in regards to Fort Lee bridge incident he repeatedly said 'we' but never said 'I'.

I applaud Drew Brees for his words and actions both on and off the field. Public figures in sports and politics should be taking notes.