New Orleans Saints legend Drew Brees tells never-before-heard story about nearly missing the famous Domecoming game
There’s *** great story. In fact, I know, I know there’s, there’s *** lot of people that are doing, you know, the, the, the 20 year, you know, specials. I know ESPN is doing *** big one, and I sat down with them and I actually gave the whole story with this because I guess Sean Payton kind of let the cat out of the bag on this so I had to elaborate on the story, but basically. You know we were staying at the Airport Hilton at the time, right? Um, so about as far away from the dome as you could possibly get right now we stay downtown and we just shoot down Poitras and you’re at the stadium, but at the time Airport Hilton and I like to get to the game 2 hours at *** time and I just have this very diligent routine, right, studying the plan, going out on the field, warming up with the guys, like all that stuff, right? And so I leave 3 hours ahead of time from the airport this is gonna give me plenty of time, right? And look, I’m still new to the community, so I don’t know every little back street and shortcut. So I head down airline, man, it’s packed. I, I head up to I-10, it’s packed. I head back to the airline, it’s packed back up to I-10 it’s packed. Like I, you know, those are the only two ways I knew. So sure enough, I’m sitting on I-10 and I’m literally like. It is, you know, coming up on 2 hours before game time 1 hour 45, hour and *** half, and I’m literally sitting on I-10 at the Poitris exit. I can see the Superdome. But now I’m like way past on my routine and we’re required to be in the locker room two hours before the game or else like you get fined, but more so that it’s like this is the biggest game of my life. I can’t believe that I’m late to the game. Like this is *** nightmare that you have where you wake up in like *** sweat like ah you know I was late to the game or I missed the game and you’re trying to get your uniform on and you can’t, right? Like your arms don’t work and you know that that dream it was like that. So at the time too, I drove *** 1997 uh Land Rover Defender D90 and it had *** safari roof on the top, right? So it sat, you know, *** little bit higher. So fine like I I literally at one point I was sitting on the off ramp to Poitras sitting there thinking, what if I park this car on the side of the highway and just start running down. Could you imagine this? Starting quarterback for the Saints Monday Night Football running down the voyager soft ramp and into the stadium. I it almost came to that, but I kind of felt like it was moving. OK, I’m gonna get there, you know, literally start jumping curves to get to our garage 5, and I get to garage 5 and I’m going to pull in and I all of *** sudden realize I may not be able to fit. This car with the safari rack into the thing, so literally I like pull up to that metal bar that hangs and it’s like I mean I’m just like uh barely get under it and I’m like yes I’m gonna make it so I go cruising up that ramp and it has those metal water pipes coming down just maybe *** few inches lower and all of *** sudden. Sparks fly and now I’m stuck under one of these metal water pipes in the parking garage right already late to get in the locker room. So I call our director of security and I’m like, Look, you’ve got to help me out like I’m stuck. I go, I’m going to get out of here. I said, but I can’t park in here and I don’t know what to do with my car. So he’s like, right, I’ll meet you outside. So I had to basically gas it to get out from under that sparks flying. I go back out of the garage. I pull it up on the curb. I jump out. I start running. Security guys coming at me. Tossing my keys and I’m like thank you. I gotta go and I was so flustered and I get, but the best part of that was I that I, I quickly get dressed and I go out on the field and my heart’s just thumping and I’m just like, alright, just kind of take it all in just calm down and Mickey Loomis comes up to me like, Hey, I heard you had *** little trouble you’re in today. He was just trying to break the ice, kind of lighten the mood. He’s like, hey, you’re here, it’s gonna be *** great night. Just relax, go have fun. So it’s all good.
New Orleans Saints legend Drew Brees tells never-before-heard story about nearly missing the famous Domecoming game
Updated: 3:11 PM CDT Aug 7, 2025
It’s a story all New Orleans Saints fans have never heard, and it truly proves that the truth can be stranger than fiction. Saints legend Drew Brees was in New Orleans Thursday for his annual Pickleball Fest at the Convention Center. Brees spoke about his experience with Hurricane Katrina 20 years later, and told a story about one of the biggest games of his career. Brees signed with the Saints just months after the storm in what was part of rebuilding the franchise and the city. The first game in the Superdome following the devastating storm was in Sept. 2006 against the arch-rival Atlanta Falcons. This game is known as the “Domecoming game,” sending a message to the world that New Orleans was reopening and rising above the destruction caused by the category 5 hurricane. Brees said former Head Coach Sean Payton revealed in an upcoming interview a story neither had told before involving him nearly missing the game due to the massive crowds who turned out for the reopening of the Superdome. “Back then we stayed at the Airport Hilton, which couldn’t be further from the Dome,” said Brees. Brees said he was unfamiliar with the back roads to the Dome, and tried multiple ways to get to the stadium. “It almost came to me parking on the side way and running down the Poydras off ramp into the Dome,” Brees said. After Brees got to the stadium, he said his bad luck kept coming because the SUV he was driving wouldn’t fit in the parking garage. Brees said he had to abandon his car with a security guard coming to his rescue. He also explains how General Manager Mickey Loomis helped get him in the right head space before the pivotal game. Listen to him tell the entire story in the video above.
NEW ORLEANS —
It’s a story all New Orleans Saints fans have never heard, and it truly proves that the truth can be stranger than fiction.
Saints legend Drew Brees was in New Orleans Thursday for his annual Pickleball Fest at the Convention Center.
Brees spoke about his experience with Hurricane Katrina 20 years later, and told a story about one of the biggest games of his career.
Brees signed with the Saints just months after the storm in what was part of rebuilding the franchise and the city.
The first game in the Superdome following the devastating storm was in Sept. 2006 against the arch-rival Atlanta Falcons.
This game is known as the “Domecoming game,” sending a message to the world that New Orleans was reopening and rising above the destruction caused by the category 5 hurricane.
Brees said former Head Coach Sean Payton revealed in an upcoming interview a story neither had told before involving him nearly missing the game due to the massive crowds who turned out for the reopening of the Superdome.
“Back then we stayed at the Airport Hilton, which couldn’t be further from the Dome,” said Brees.
Brees said he was unfamiliar with the back roads to the Dome, and tried multiple ways to get to the stadium.
“It almost came to me parking on the side way and running down the Poydras off ramp into the Dome,” Brees said.
After Brees got to the stadium, he said his bad luck kept coming because the SUV he was driving wouldn’t fit in the parking garage.
Brees said he had to abandon his car with a security guard coming to his rescue.
He also explains how General Manager Mickey Loomis helped get him in the right head space before the pivotal game.
Listen to him tell the entire story in the video above.