Brees did say he had always hoped this Arizona game would be the moment he returned. He felt better about accomplishing that feat when he threw the ball in practice, especially last Thursday. That was the first time he felt like he could make all the throws he needed to make in a game. As Brees said, "I wanted to push it as much as we [could]. A lot of it was just the ability to get a grip on the ball and throw it accurately and just be myself and play confidently. As soon as I could grip it and rip it, I wanted to play."