Nick Foles reveals the message Drew Brees sent him just before Super Bowl
“It’s just football.”
Those three words helped inspire one of the most unlikely stories in Super Bowl history.
There was no way journeyman Nick Foles was going to beat the greatest quarterback of all-time, Tom Brady.
Until he did.
Perhaps the most impressive part of Foles’ performance was that the stage was clearly not too big for him.
As it turns out, Foles got some help from an old high school buddy — a guy you may have heard of — Drew Brees.
“A guy I’ve always looked up to and still do,” Foles said. “He just does it the right way. Obviously, he’s one of the greatest of all time.”
Just before the biggest game of his life, Foles received a text message from a guy who’s played in 13 playoff games and led New Orleans to a Super Bowl championship.
“A lot of the message I’ll keep to myself, but the big thing was going into this game, he just reminded me that it’s just football,” Foles said. “There’s a lot of things going on, pregame, a longer pregame, a big halftime show, but at the end of the day when you’re out there, the game will settle down, and it’ll just be football.”
It wasn’t the regular type of football we’ve seen from Foles this season. In fact, it was good enough to win the game’s MVP honors — 373 yards, three touchdowns passing and one receiving.
Foles said the message from Brees was right on the mark.
“He was right,” Foles said. “You don’t really know. I’ve never played in a Super Bowl. It’s the biggest stage there is in this game, something you dream about as a kid, so when you’re out there, you don’t know how your body’s going to react, you don’t know how your mind’s going to react. I was able to settle down.”
Foles became just the second quarterback from Texas to win a Super Bowl, joining Brees.
It’s interesting that both the Saints and Eagles used courageous trick plays to win their titles.
New Orleans coach Sean Payton ordered an onside kick to start the second half against the Colts. The Saints scored and went on to take control of the game.
And nobody will ever forget the “Philly Special,” which led to Foles catching a touchdown pass from rookie running back Corey Clement.
The Saints missed out on the Super Bowl this year, but as Foles can attest, Brees ended up playing an important role in Philadelphia’s upset victory.
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