Brees knew he was retiring with eye toward making a difference in the community

Now that Drew Brees has retired, the page has turned on his career and life as he is set to embark on his new career as a football commentator on the NFL with NBC.

Brees did his first public interview, appropriately, on NBC on The Today Show Monday morning with his friend and former New Orleans resident and resident Saints fan and Brees admirer Hoda Kotb, the co-host of The Today Show, who once served as a news anchor at WWL-TV.

Kotb began the interview by asking Brees when he knew it was time to retire?

“That’s a decision that you don’t just wake up one day and say hey, I’m going to retire,” Brees said. “It’s definitely a process. I’m 42-years-old. I’ve had a chance to play this game for 20 years in the NFL and I think for the last few years, I felt like this moment was coming.

It just made me so laser focused on staying in the moment each and every day, enjoying the moment, enjoying the preparation, enjoying the grind, enjoying the celebrations with my teammates, just knowing that at some point, I will retire and move on to the next chapter and I want to be able to look back with incredible memories and knowing that I gave it my absolute best.”

Did Brees know when he ran off the field following the 30-20 loss to Tampa Bay in the NFC Divisional Round on Jan. 17 that he had played his final down in the NFL?

“I did,” Brees said. “Really, I’ve approached the last four seasons with that mentality of I’m just going to pour everything I have into the season and then I’ll give myself at least a little while after the season to soak it in with my family and my wife, Brittany and then make a very thoughtful decision. Going into this season, I felt like this was going to be it and let’s go get it.”

What will Brees miss the most about football?

“There’s so many things,” Brees said. “The moments on the field after the game. I think those are the moments that my kids most looked forward to. It’s the game after the game. I think that’s been one of the most special parts of this whole journey is watching our kids grow up through this and be able to retain the information and come to the Saints facility and they would jump in the hot tub with me, they would run around the indoor facility.

They would bring their footballs to the game, knowing that they would have an opportunity to go on the field after to play so having them be a part of this and knowing that there’s memories and hopefully moments of inspiration for them that will last a lifetime, that’s what it’s all about.”

Brees arrived in New Orleans in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, to a bad 3-13 team in disarray, to a city in disarray and with a new, unproven, first time head coach. There were many reasons that it would not work and yet it did. A man of faith, Brees believes he knows why.

“I feel like there was divine intervention there,” Brees said. “I can remember like it was yesterday Brittany and I visiting New Orleans. It was six months post-Katrina and the city was just in shambles.”

Then, new Saints coach Sean Payton, who may have come close to blowing getting a deal done with Brees by making a wrong turn, instead, took the right turn to righting a franchise in a strange twist of fate.

“I think the Saints were trying to show us the best of the city and they were trying to show us maybe some neighborhoods that were still intact and hey look, you can live here, you can raise a family, this is a great place and it wasn’t until Sean Payton got lost driving us back to the Saints facility at one point. Keep in mind that he’d only been there a month.”

Then came the wrong turn which turned out to be the right move.

“He got lost in Lakeview right next to the 17th Street Canal where some of the worst flooding and destruction had occurred,” Brees said. “I remember seeing houses ripped off the foundations and in fact, at one point, the car stopped and we both looked up and there was a tug boat in the middle of the road so we had to turn around because we couldn’t pass.”

The moment was an epiphany for Brees.

“That was the moment when Brittany and I looked at each other and said this is so much more than just football,” Brees said. “This is part of the resurrection and resurgence of one of America’s greatest cities and we have a chance to be a part of this.”

It became clear to Brees through his faith what his next home would be.

“This is a calling, Brees said.

The reaction to the retirement announcement has been heartwarming for the Brees family.

“It’s been amazing,” Brees said. “Just the outpouring of support and emotion and memories. I think anything you do, especially when you pour your heart and soul into it, I think you hope that you’re able to impact people in a really positive way.”

“Life is full of defining moments and life is full of kind of next chapters and I think that whenever you leave one chapter and go on to the next one, I think you hope to have left a legacy behind it where you left it better than when you found it,” Brees said.

“I think that’s always been my philosophy. That’s always the way I’ve tried to approach life. These are memories and these are relationships that will last a lifetime and we’re all better for it.”

Brees then announced the worst kept secret, the next phase of his work life as a television commentator.

“I’m going to be working for NBC,” Brees said. “I’m part of the team now. A new team. I’m excited about that journey. I’m excited to stay very closely connected with the game of football. It’s been such an important part of my life. I continue to be able to talk about it and show a passion for it and bring my kids along for the ride there as well and let them be part of some of those special moments.”

Brees has more on his plate to deliver to the New Orleans area and to others.

“There’s so many philanthropic endeavors that we are involved with, especially in the city of New Orleans and a lot of those will be announced here over the coming months,” Brees said.

The quarterback-turned-analyst could not conceal his enthusiasm for trying to make a difference moving forward.

“I’ll be honest. I am most excited about those things because that’s where I think we can make the biggest impact and there’s still so much need in this country and certainly in this city,” Brees said. “I’m excited that we have the opportunity to be involved in those things and create some sustainable models that we can replicate throughout this country to continue to push us forward.”