Drew Brees’ Hall of Fame bust has one of the smallest details getting the biggest reaction: the birthmark on his right cheek.
That touch showed up when the former Saints quarterback was unveiled as a Hall of Famer on Saturday afternoon at Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium, giving the Class of 2026 bust a lifelike look that fans immediately noticed. During the ceremony, Brees even put his thumb on the right side of his bust and rubbed the side of his face with the natural birthmark.
The mark has followed Brees through his football life, and he’s addressed it before. In 2012, he told CNN, "Because of my birthmark, which I was obviously born with, I got all kinds of comments when I was a kid, about 'Wipe that whatever off your face,' Brees told CNN in 2012.
"... All kinds of names.
People would call me 'Spot.' I think they were trying to be malicious.
They were trying to be hurtful."
Brees later turned that experience into a message for others. In 2010, he said, per NBC Sports, "Making fun of someone because they're different from you?
That's not being tough, it's being ignorant," Brees said in 2010, per NBC Sports. "I want my fans to know that if you're making fun of someone ... then you are no friend of mine."
He also wrote about the birthmark in his book, "Coming Back Stronger," saying he once considered having it removed before deciding it was part of him. "Instead of seeing it as a bad thing, I chose to see it as something that made me unique and special," Brees wrote.
"It set me apart from everyone else. ... Now it's just a part of who I am.
I wouldn't consider cutting off my arm. Neither would I cut off my birthmark."
The bust detail only adds to the moment for the Super Bowl 44 MVP, who is now officially in Canton. Brees became immortalized on Saturday as the Hall of Fame ceremony marked another milestone in a career that stretched 20 years. According to Pro Football Reference, here are the stats Brees accumulated throughout his 20-year NFL career.
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