Drew Brees, Saints pull away to beat Bears in wild-card game

Brady-Brees III, here we go.

Quarterbacks Tom Brady and Drew Brees will face each other in the playoffs for the first time when the Buccaneers visit the Saints next Sunday in the NFC divisional round.

Brees led the Saints to a 21-9 win over the Bears on Sunday at the Superdome in New Orleans after Brady advanced with a 31-23 win over Washington on Saturday night.

"I don’t take it for granted. Very appreciative of the opportunity," Brees said afterward. "The minute he signed with the Bucs, you felt like that was going to be a team to contend with and had playoff aspirations, just like us. I guess it was inevitable."

Both 40-something quarterbacks someday will be in the Hall of Fame. The 43-year-old Brady won a record six Super Bowl rings during a 20-year career with the Patriots and Brees, who will turn 42 on Friday, has won one championship ring with the Saints.

The Saints beat Tampa Bay, 34-23, at home in the regular-season opener and then drubbed the Bucs, 38-3, on the road as Brady threw three interceptions. It was his worst game of the season and the only one in which he didn’t have at least one touchdown pass.

Brees earned the chance to play Brady a third time with a workmanlike performance against the Bears in what could be the final playoff run of his career. Although he hasn’t officially declared that he will retire after the playoffs, Brees’ initial waffling about playing in 2020 and a rib injury that forced him to miss four games this season might convince him it’s time to walk away.

Brees finished 28-for-39 for 265 yards and two touchdowns against the Bears. He scored what appeared to be a touchdown on a 1-yard dive on fourth down with 2:19 left in regulation, but a replay review showed that he didn’t get any part of the ball across the goal line.

"I thought I was in," he said. "I guess I just pulled the ball back a little too soon. I’ll just have to do a few more box jumps tomorrow."

Brees solved a Bears team that showed defensive resilience but couldn’t get into the end zone on offense until it was too late.

Embattled quarterback Mitchell Trubisky may have played his final game for Chicago. The Bears have not committed to him beyond this season, and Sunday’s playoff loss after an 8-8 season won’t help. Trubisky was benched from Weeks 4-10 in favor of Nick Foles but regained the starting job and helped Chicago reach the playoffs for the second time in his career.

New Orleans opened a 14-3 lead with 4:08 left in the third quarter as Brees engineered a 12-play, 85-yard drive that featured a 38-yard completion to Michael Thomas down the left side.

On second-and-goal from the 6, Brees was under pressure but found Latavius Murray, who had fallen while delivering a block, on a short pass to the right, and Murray dashed into the end zone for Brees’ second touchdown pass of the game.

The Bears’ only touchdown came on the game’s final play, when former Saints tight end Jimmy Graham made a one-handed catch.

"This is playoff football, and each game becomes more meaningful," Brees said. "We have to continue to fine-tune and find ways to play our best football."

By Bob Glauber

Special to NewsdayBobGlauber

Bob Glauber retired in 2022 after covering the NFL for nearly 40 years. He was selected in 2021 for the Bill Nunn Career Achievement Award by the Pro Football Writers of America, and is a three-time winner of the New York State Sportswriter of the Year by the National Sports Media Association. President of the PFWA for the 2018-20 seasons, he is the author of “The Forgotten First” and “Guts and Genius.”