No, You Fools, Drew Brees Was Not Struck by Lightning on Camera

Internet sleuths went into overdrive Friday trying to answer a question for the ages: Was Drew Brees struck by lightning live on camera... or was it all an elaborate publicity stunt? The multinational mystery began when Brees, the legendary former New Orleans Saints quarterback, tweeted Monday that he was “flying to a top-secret location” to shoot a promo for a sports betting site. A video then emerged on Twitter early Friday appearing to show Brees being struck as he was getting set up to film near Venezuela’s Catatumbo River, an area infamous for its lightning strikes. The betting site, PointsBet, only muddied the waters by issuing a vague statement saying it was “in communication with Brees’ team.” NewOrleans.Football reporter Nick Underhill didn’t help either, simply tweeting “he’s fine” in response to one of the many people wondering aloud if Brees was dead or alive. But answers finally came via ESPN’s Saints writer Katherine Terrell, who tweeted, “I just texted Drew Brees. He said he’s good and that he did not get struck by lightning.” Underhill later added that the whole thing was indeed a “spoof.”