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Brees is back in fighting condition.

The QB for the New Orleans Saints, Drew Brees, has been down for the count for a long while now. Compared to numerous other athletes of the NFL, however, he wasn’t sick with COVID-19. Rather, way back during a week 10 game against the San Francisco 49ers, it was determined that he had a punctured lung and multiple broken ribs (some of which he had apparently been nursing since the previous game), and he was benched for recovery. After missing four straight games, Brees is all patched up and ready to go once more.

The Saints are planning to return Brees to their starting lineup in time for Sunday’s big game against the Kansas City Chiefs. Brees has been cleared by both his doctors and team staff to play once again. Saints coach Sean Payton was especially strict on his requirements for Brees to return, saying that he needed to be “asymptomatic, feeling good, strong and like he can function and be an asset and play well.”

“There’s a recovery element, there’s a strength element. And I’ll know when that time comes,” Brees said in an interview with Cox Sports.

Drew Brees will be the Saints’ starting QB Sunday vs. the Chiefs, a source told @AdamSchefter.

Mahomes vs. Brees 🍿 pic.twitter.com/VsbWaB2I1C

— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) December 18, 2020

Despite the absence of their star quarterback, the Saints have managed to stay on top of the game in the meantime, only losing one out of the past four games to the Philadelphia Eagles. They’re currently on track for a No. 2 seed in the NFC, pending a tiebreaker against the Green Bay Packers.

With Brees back on the team, Taysom Hill, who took Brees’ place while he was out of commission, will return to his usual role of going wherever he’s needed on the field. Jameis Winston will remain as the team’s number 2 QB.