Saints quarterback Drew Brees has fielded hundreds of questions this preseason, but one in particular is getting asked again and again - and getting under his skin.
"What's it like to have Sean Payton back?"
"He has been asked that question so many times, and I have been asked that question so many times," Brees said wearily in the team's final media availability before Thursday's game against the Miami Dolphins. "I think for us, it's really in the past."
Brees also debunks the theory that last year's Bounty suspensions are fueling the fire to succeed this season.
"We are on to the next season," Brees said. "We are always motivated. We are always inspired to go out. Our mindset is forget what you did the year before whether it was good or bad. You have to prove it again this year. There is always another challenge. We feel that no time has passed, and we are right back in line with Sean Payton's program. It's what we do, so it's not like I walk out of here at practice and see him and be like, 'Whoa, it's Sean Payton. He's back.'"
The "Payton Returns" storyline may have run its course within the walls of Saints camp in Metairie, but it will no doubt be a headline again next week when the Saints kick start the regular season with a matchup at home versus the Atlanta Falcons, their division rival.
