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CALGARY -- Dealing with a career-threatening shoulder injury four years ago, Drew Brees sought the advice of good pal Dave Dickenson who had previously suffered an identical ailment.
Now it's Dickenson who can't wait to pick the brain of his former San Diego Chargers teammate following a Super Bowl performance that made Brees America's latest hero.
"I guess I've got to wait until he gets back from Disney World," Dickenson said with a chuckle, well aware the Super Bowl MVP typically bolts to Mickey Mouse's house.
"I texted him before the game but I'm going to give him a little break.
"I remember after I won (Grey Cup MVP) in '06 I had like 22 email messages -- he'd have about 2,200. He'll be inundated so I'll wait a bit before I call him."
It's been eight years since the two were NFL rookies in San Diego, vying for backup duties behind Doug Flutie. Yet despite taking wildly different career paths before and after meeting, Dickenson and Brees maintained an unlikely friendship.
"We just hit it off," said Dickenson, now a Stampeders offensive assistant coach who last got together with Brees in San Diego just over a year ago.
"It's easy for me -- he's the big-timer. Last time I saw him we were sitting out on a
restaurant patio and he didn't get bothered by people -- he just fits in as a normal guy."
That may change now that the largest TV audience in North American history watched Brees cap off one of the most unlikely and inspirational Super Bowl runs in NFL lore.
Giving the people of New Orleans something to cheer about and take great pride in following years of heartache and devastation from Hurricane Katrina, Brees is now the region's unofficial mayor. Make that King.
"Everything that happened reinforced what I thought of him," Dickenson said, forever amazed at Brees' attitude.
"Unwavering confidence. No one is as confident as him in his own abilities. He just knows he's going to succeed and he's been that way since I met him."
Did Dickenson believe the second-round draft pick from Purdue was capable of such greatness?
"I knew he was a winner," said Dickenson, who had a similar knack while dominating in the CFL.
"I didn't think he'd be this good but I did think all-pro and a leader. I actually thought San Diego would win a Super Bowl when Drew was there. He has a way of instilling confidence and the rest of the guys play better around him."
Dickenson believes Brees' arm strength improved with the surgery and rehab following his dislocated shoulder suffered in his last game as a Charger in 2005.
"You don't know it at the time but everything happens for a reason," Dickenson said of the ailment that essentially left the free agent with one serious suitor -- the Saints.
"That's career-ending for many guys and we talked about it. I guarantee you inside he had questions about his future in the game but he never would've publicly said that because he's so positive."
What impresses Dickenson most about his pal, outside of a terrific golf game, is his depth as a person.
"Drew really has a social conscience -- he wants to make a difference outside of football," he said.
"From the start he wanted to get involved in the community. He wants to do more than just be a great quarterback."
That's evident with how passionately he spoke of
his duty to help rebuild New Orleans.
It was also evident when shown glassy-eyed while holding his one-year-old son after the game.
"That was a hallmark moment," Dickenson said. "Drew has a lot of interests and family is important.
"Peyton (Manning) is a good dude and is maybe the best ever, but he's all football."
Brees, insists Dickenson, is all heart.
Which easily explains how he was able to raise the spirits of a region and a nation Sunday.
eric.francis@sunmedia.ca