New Orleans Saints Quarterback Drew Brees
Postgame Press Conference
Monday, September 9, 2019

(On confidence in Will Lutz to make the kick)
"Very confident. Obviously, that was a long field goal, but I think it was a good thing that he attempted one from almost that same spot earlier in the game, so he had a look at it. A ton of confidence for all of us to get back in that situation with a chance to win the game, we all felt like it was going to happen the minute we heard that ball go off his foot. It was a thundering kick and we all knew it was going in the uprights."

(On Texan defense playing off in the last two minutes)
"Really that whole drive, first of all, the challenge with that drive was 37 seconds and one timeout. You want to try to save that timeout, if at all possible. You need chunks to try to put yourself in field goal range. I felt like we did a really good job. We practiced that and I think we felt like we did exactly what we needed to do in order to give ourselves a chance to win. Big completion by Ted Ginn, clock it. Big completion to Mike (Thomas), clock it. Then to get up there and asses what they're doing, I have the ability to get us into whatever play we need to get into that's going to put us in position to win that game. Ted (Ginn Jr.) did a great job all day long. You get seven targets, seven catches, over 100 yards, a couple of really big plays, especially in the fourth quarter."

(On first second-and-ten mindset)
"It's a big difference in your flexibility as an offense when you have a timeout and how the defense is going to defend you. If they know you have to get out of bounds, then it's much easier for them to defend. It's protect that timeout at all costs and even though you're spiking it with six seconds left, we're ok. We can get the yardage we need to get ourselves in position to get the game win."

(On Ryan Ramczyk's performance on J.J. Watt)
"He did a phenomenal job all game long, really that entire front did. Early on, when you pass the first half, you look at the numbers and think we have to get back and run the ball a little bit more. We put together some long drives and got some big plays but there's a lot of stuff in the passing game and not necessarily in the run. We finished off with about 180 yards rushing, seven yards a carry. Really both sides rushed, they rushed it really well. Two really good teams going at it. Two playoff teams from a year ago with really good offenses and really good defenses. It was a battle all game long."

(On Deshaun Watson)
"He's a very good player and so versatile. He can throw the ball from the pocket and you see what happens when he's able to get out of the pocket. Obviously, he's a really good athlete and he can get yardage with his legs, but his ability to create. You saw what he did on third and longs and they were able to get out of some tough situations because of his versatility."

(On what Drew is looking for during the last drive)
"I'm always looking for matchups, but because they are playing a bit more conservative. Listen, every defense plays it a little bit different. Typically, you see in that situation something you haven't seen all game long and you have to be able to react on the fly. Everybody has to know that this may be your matchup, your opportunity, just like it was on the first throw with Ted (Ginn Jr.) and the second throw to Mike (Thomas). Those guys had the matchup, so those guys got the ball."\

(On the impact of Alvin Kamara)
"He's a stud. That one he made when we got backed up on the holding call was pretty impressive. He made some great plays really all game long both in the passing game and the run game. Having a guy like him is good for me."

(On the Taysom Hill touchdown)
"I saw Mike Thomas get a ton of attention and they let Taysom run free. They did a good job all game long with the stuff they were doing, but there were times where they would give some attention to Mike that would open up opportunities elsewhere for other people, and then it just happened to be Taysom."

(On winning first season opener since 2013)
"It's hard to believe. Yes, it's great to start the season off with a win and be in the positive. Obviously, we know the stretch of games we have coming up here. Here we are with a short week and then play the Rams in LA, then up to Seattle, and back here to Dallas on Sunday Night Football. Kind of a gauntlet here for the first half of the season. We know what we're up against and need to make improvements very, very quickly because we need to play our best football."

(On practicing that specific final two-minutes in practice)
"I can't remember the last time we worked on that. You work on a ton of two-minute situations but most of the time you got a one minute and fifty seconds for a touchdown. Maybe you have 50 seconds with two timeouts, and you need a field goal. Most of the time you don't have just 30 seconds, 37 seconds, with one timeout and need a field goal. We do put ourselves in those situations a lot in practice where you have to be very precise and know how to manage the clock to put yourself in a position to win."

(On knowing where to get Will Lutz for the kick)
"He's got a big leg, which is great, and kicking in the dome here too. His first game as a Saint was the opening game of 2016 where he attempted a 61-yard kick. I think we had the leg for it, against the Raiders, and I knew if we could get him a little closer it would be even better."

(On the runoff call in the first half)
"I still don't know what the deal was. Someone came up to me in the locker room and said the league acknowledged that there was a mistake that was made. Ten seconds should not have been run off and we should have had 31 seconds left instead of 16. That can't happen. That's a game changer. We end up having to kick a 58-yard field goal, or whatever it was, attempt a 58-yard kick. If we had 15 more seconds, are you kidding me, we would've gotten closer. That's a game changer. That can't happen."

(On Jared Cook's contribution)
"He contributed and did a great job. I'm really excited as we go along here too because we know what Mike (Thomas), we know what Alvin (Kamara) can do, we know what Ted (Ginn Jr.) can do, and now these young players. Jared Cook having opportunities and getting matchups. They're going to be big contributors."

(On center Erik McCoy)
"I felt like he hung in there and did a really good job. He's got a great group around him that work so well together. Give a lot of credit for his first game out to get a win like this on Monday night football at home, that's got to mean something."