Drew Brees: The Underappreciated One
Stop and think of some of the best quarterbacks in NFL history…
I bet some of the all-time legends such as Peyton Manning, Tom Brady, John Elway, Brett Favre, Dan Marino and Joe Montana came to mind. How about New Orleans Saints QB Drew Brees? You are probably thinking of multiple QB’s that are better than Brees all-time and countering every possible argument as to why Brees should not be regarded as one of the best to play the QB position. In contrast, Drew Brees has arguably had one of the best careers that ANY NFL player has ever had. WHY???
Where do you start when examining Drew Brees’ rank among the greatest QB’s? How about looking at where he ranks all-time with some of the other legends. Drew Brees currently ranks 4th all-time in career passing yards at 60,903 behind the now retired Peyton Manning as well as Brett Favre and Dan Marino. At 37-years-old, if Brees were to play three more years for the Saints, or another team, averaging 3,700 passing yards a season, he would finish his career as #1 on the career passing yards list. Brees has passed for at least 3,700 passing yards since 2006 so it is safe to say that if he stays healthy, the record will be his among many others.
Brees has also distinguished himself as one of the most accurate passers in NFL history. Saints and Chargers fans have spent Sundays marveling at the wonders of Brees’ deep passes as he airs it out off of his right foot. The wide receivers of both teams will always give their praise for Brees as he provided some wondrous deep pass throws.
In Brees’ 14 year career as a starter in the NFL, he has completed at least 65% of his passes 9 times. In Brees’ career, he has averaged to complete 66.4% of his passes, which is #1 in NFL history. Brees has also done what only Ken Anderson, Sammy Baugh, Steve Young, and Joe Montana have accomplished in a season, which is complete 70% of passes in a season. What is remarkable about it is that Brees has done that TWICE in 2009 and 2011.
The fact that Drew Brees has been able to maintain a record-breaking completion percentage throughout his career says a lot about his efficiency. Throwing over 8,000 pass attempts and completing 66.4% of them is just incredible video game numbers. Completing 65% of passes with 4,650 passing yards is a typical season for him and that is something that many QB’s never achieve to do. His efficiency and consistency are similar to that of Bulls legend Michael Jordan, a player who would average 30 PPG AND at least, 50% shooting in a season.
When looking at some of the other paramount QB stats, Brees is tied for 3rd all-time in career TD’s with 428 and 3rd all-time in career completions. Unlike passing yards, attempting to finish his career #1 in career TD’s and career completions all-time will be a rigorous task to complete. Assuming Brees would comply to play another three seasons, he would need to average at least 38 TD’s a season to pass Peyton Manning on the all-time TD’s list. Brees has passed for at least 38 TD’s in a season three times in his career. When it comes to all-time completions, Brees would need to complete at least 330 passes over the next three years to pass Brett Favre for #1 on career completions. Brees has completed at least 330 passes in every season since 2006.
What many fans look for in a QB is not only excelling in the regular season but also playing high-level football in the playoffs. Overall with the Chargers and Saints, Drew Brees has played in 11 playoff games and his numbers have been spectacular. Brees has completed 65.9% of his passes for 3539 yards and a nice ratio of 24 TD’s/6 INT’s. You also can not forget about the magical year that he had in 2009 where he led the Saints to their first ever Super Bowl win completing 70.6% of his passes for 732 yards and 8 TD’s/0 INT in three playoff games even with a below average defense that he was carrying.
While you may look at Brees’ 6–5 playoff record and hold it against him when ranking the best QB’s, would someone really have the audacity to put the blame on Brees? Arguments for comparing QB’s in the NFL has become one of the most deluded debates that some sports fans experience due to how much credit is being given to a QB when it comes to team success. Some fans base their assessment of a QB on how many Super Bowls the player has won in contrast to actually looking at the individual player and their impact.
That’s how players should be evaluated in the world of sports and that’s how I will examine Drew Brees.
For beginners, Drew Brees has thrown more TD’s than INT’s in all but one of his 11 playoff games as well as completing at least 60% of passes in 8 of those games.
To really examine Drew Brees in the playoffs, we need to breakdown, his playoff games and look no further than his 1st playoff game. In 2004 under coach Marty Schottenheimer, Drew Brees led the #3 ranked offense Chargers into their wild-card game against the Jets. With the Jets containing LaDainian Tomlinson, Drew Brees had an excellent game against the #4 ranked defense going 31 for 42 for 319 yards and 2 TD’s/1 INT. He would lead the Chargers on a game-tying drive late in the 4th as well as setting up a possible game-winning drive in OT but… Nate Kaeding missed a 40-yard field goal. Jets would later kick the game-winning field goal and win 20–17 in OT on the road and advance to the next round. You think the loss was Drew Brees’ fault? Too much blame and even credit will fall on the quarterback way too often.
Two years later Brees would inspire a nation as he would lead the Saints to the NFC Championship game in his 1st year with the team. Brees did account for two turnovers but threw for 354 yards and 2 TD’s against the #3 defense in the NFL. Brees did enough to keep the team in the game until the Saints collapsed in the 4th quarter. His last playoff appearance to date saw the Saints fall to the best defense in the NFL, the Seattle Seahawks in 2013 despite a 308 yards/1 TD performance.
To really examine Brees’ heartbreak in January, look no further than two of the most exciting finishes to a playoff game over the past 20 years.
A year after winning the Super Bowl, Brees, and the Saints traveled to Seattle for their wild- card game in 2010. With no running game to balance out the offense, Brees gathered Marques Colston, Devery Henderson, and company for a historic passing performance. Drew Brees completed 39 of 60(65%) passes for 405 yards and 2 TD’s. The 60 pass attempts without an interception is an NFL playoff record that still stands to this day. It was a signature Drew Brees game where he was launching rockets from the pocket and getting the offense in rhythm. For Brees, his defense was ineffective throughout the game and just collapsed because of Beast Mode.
For heartbreak #2, it would come in 2011 where the Saints had realistic hopes of advancing to their 2nd Super Bowl. Brees and the Saints were the #1 offense in the NFL and had broken multiple NFL records en route to a playoff spot. A week after Brees tore apart the Lions with a 466 yard/ 76%/3 TD day, he would meet the #2 defense in the NFL 49ers. Brees would put up stellar numbers going for 40/63 for 462 yards and 4 TD’s/2 INT. He would fool 49ers pass coverage with a 44 yard TD pass to Darren Sproles and a 66 yard TD pass to Jimmy Graham to take the lead in San Francisco.
Like in past years, his defense would once again fail him.
Going back in time and reviewing some of Brees’ biggest playoff games would tell you that the 6–5 record is a deceiving statistic for him. He did his best against some of the best defenses in the NFL but his own defense would halt the team from a couple more Super Bowl runs. Using Brees 6–5 record against him is like blaming Michael Jordan for the Bulls failure to get to the NBA Finals in the 1980’s or even blaming Peyton for only winning two Super Bowls in his illustrious career. They all did their part to bring home a win but some people still fail to come to the conclusion that sports is a team game and to win, you need an absolute team effort. It’s really that simple.
How else would someone compare QB’s? One should look at what the quarterback had during his run in the NFL. Starting with defense, Brees has had notoriously dysfunctional defenses over his career. The numbers obviously do not lie with the defensive numbers that his team has had when he was a starter.
Brees has played with an astonishing eight defenses that ranked 20th or worse in defensive PPG.
Brees has been unlucky to be a part of some of the worst defenses over the past decade. By the numbers, he has been a part of only two top 10 defensive teams and you know how the old saying goes, defense wins championships. When it comes to relying on your defense for key takeaways, Brees has not received much help either. Brees has been part of only two teams that were in the top 10 in takeaway/giveaway ratio in his career. Although, Brees has had excellent teammates such as Jonathan Vilma, Donnie Edwards, and Tracy Porter, the team’s overall play in many of Brees’ teams have just not been subpar at best.
When you compare what Brees has had in his career compared to other QB’s, it’s really unfair.
NFL QB# of times the QB has been a part of a top 10 defense (PPG)
Drew Brees: 2
Peyton Manning: 6
Tom Brady: 12
Brett Favre: 8
Joe Montana: 10
Dan Marino: 4
John Elway: 8
Steve Young: 5
Ben Roethlisberger: 7
Troy Aikman: 7
All of those players, except for Marino, have at least one Super Bowl to their collection and for many of them, they are regarded as some of the best QB’s of all-time. Drew Brees has been the unlucky one of the bunch to only be around 2 top 10 defenses in the NFL. A defense can carry a team and definitely take some of the pressure off of the QB as seen basically the last five Super Bowls.
The Saints vs Giants game this past season perfectly describes what Brees has had to go through. Even when you throw for 7 TD’s, a win is not guaranteed.
When you also consider the weapons that Drew Brees has had over his career, he is at another disadvantage. Out of Purdue, Brees was drafted by the Chargers and had players such as David Boston, Curtis Conway, and Eric Parker. It wasn’t until Brees’ 3rd season in the NFL where he finally had a reliable target in Antonio Gates. Gates would catch 30% of Brees attempts in 2004 and a young duo was emerging as one of the best in the NFL. It would all change when Brees would move to New Orleans and finally play in a pass friendly offense that would match his potential. With the Saints, Drew Brees would be throwing to receivers such as Marques Colston, Devery Henderson, Lance Moore, Jimmy Graham, Jeremy Shockey, Robert Meachem, Kenny Stills, Brandin Cooks, etc. It’s remarkable that Brees has been playing at an elite level at quarterback with those weapons at his disposal.
Now if you compare what Brees has had in his career to the QB’s in the above chart, is it really a contest? Imagine Drew Brees with Randy Moss, Marvin Harrison, Jerry Rice, Shannon Sharpe, Antonio Brown, Michael Irvin, Wes Welker, Donald Driver, and the list can go on and on and on. Looking at the big picture, it’s safe to say that Brees will be the one QB that never had a Hall of Fame player to throw to. Brees did have Antonio Gates who will likely be an HOF tight end when it’s all said and done but Brees only got to play with him in Gates’ first three years of his career.
Looking at Brees’ help with having a solid running back, there should be no complaints about him, especially during his Chargers day. Who is the first player that you think of when someone talks about the San Diego “Super” Chargers? It's very likely LaDainian Tomlinson, one of the greatest runningbacks of all-time. Tomlinson rushed for at least 1300 yards a season during Brees time in San Diego and created one of the best-balanced offenses over the past decade. For Brees, that would be the last time ever the words “balanced offense” would describe an offenses ran under him. With the Saints, Brees has had to hand it off to RB’s such as Deuce McAllister, Reggie Bush, Pierre Thomas, Mike Bell, Chris Ivory, Mark Ingram, Darren Sproles, and C.J Spiller. Not the best bunch of RB’s, which is why it’s been a rollercoaster ride for the Saints to snag a consistent rusher.
While Drew Brees has been handicapped throughout his career with not having the best defenses/ receiving groups around him, the Chargers and Saints have probably put more years into his career with a formidable offensive line. As a pocket passer, Brees does not have the ability to scramble out of the pocket and make a nice run. On average per season, Brees has been sacked 23 times which is respectable considering what players such as Ben Roethlisberger and John Elway have had to go through. Former NFL All-Pros Jahri Evans and Carl Nicks are just two of the many players that have done an above average job of protecting Brees.
Looking back at Brees’ career where he has accomplished every single task that one can accomplish, Brees has indeed failed to come up with the big individual awards. Drew Brees has never won an MVP award and has only made it onto the NFL All-Pro 1st team list once and that was in his first year in New Orleans.
It is really a flaw in Brees’ career that he has never won MVP or been on more than one 1st team All-Pro or have the requirements for the award been unjustified?
Well for starters, Brees played in the same era with arguably the top two quarterbacks in NFL history in Peyton Manning and Tom Brady. If you also throw in Aaron Rodgers, the trio have combined for 9 MVP awards and 11 first team All-Pro selections. While Brees has been unlucky to play in an era with three phenomenal QB’s, the selection process for the awards is broken.
The MVP does not count for which player was the best in an NFL season but the best player on the best team. One could examine this past season and compare the seasons of Cam Newton and Tom Brady. This debate could go on for days but the point being that MVP does not equate with being the best player in the NFL but the best player on the best team. Brees has had the unfortunate luck of playing for some mediocre teams.
If it was an award for the best team, Brees would have plenty of MVP’s such as in 2011. Aaron Rodgers won the 2011 NFL MVP award with a stat line of 68% of passes for 4643 yards, 45 TD’s, and 0 4th quarter comebacks compared to Drew Brees with 71.2% of passes for 5476 passing yards, 46 TD’s, 14 INT’s and 3 4th quarter comebacks. Its just an example of one of many potential MVP seasons if the criteria were the best player of the season.
In the world of sports, the narrative does not prove points since it just leads to pointless fallacies. Facts. Stats. Evidence. Counter Arguments. The point has been proven here when discussing the legacy of Drew Brees. In my opinion, he is one of the most underappreciated and underrated sports athletes of all-time. I also have him as the 4th greatest quarterback of all-time behind the trio of Peyton Manning, Tom Brady, and Joe Montana. Move over Brett Favre, John Elway, and Dan Marino. The spot is for Drew Brees, a legend whose legacy is still alive and kicking.
Writer’s Note: Stats in this article credited to the NFL, ESPN, and Pro Football Reference.
