CHICAGO — Saints quarterback Drew Brees earned his third FedEx Air NFL Player of the Week award nomination after his performance in New Orleans’ 31-15 win over the Bears at Soldier Field on Monday night.
Brees was 29-of-36 passing for 375 yards and three touchdowns in the victory for the Saints (6-8). He said he felt his team played as loose as it has all year against the Bears (5-9), whose defense was among the worst in the NFL heading into Monday night.
The Saints can now clinch their division and a berth in the playoffs on Sunday if two things happen: they beat archrival Atlanta (5-9) in New Orleans and Carolina (5-8-1) loses to Cleveland (7-7).
Brees was nominated for the weekly, fan-voted award after the Saints’ 37-31 win at home over Tampa Bay on Oct. 5 and a 24-23 defeat at Detroit on Oct. 19. This time, he is up against Steelers QB Ben Roethlisberger, who was 27-of-35 for 360 yards in a 27-20 win at Atlanta on Sunday; and Kansas City’s Alex Smith, who was 18-of-30 for 297 yards and two touchdowns in a 31-13 win over Oakland.
Fans can vote for Brees, Roethlisberger or Smith at NFL.com/FedEx. If Brees wins, FedEx will donate $2,000 to the American Red Cross’ New Orleans chapter.