Top 50 NFL Quarterbacks: #7 - Drew Brees

Drew Brees

Drew Brees was not expected to be one of the all-time greats when his career began, as he was considered small for an NFL quarterback and didn't come from a traditional college powerhouse. He was drafted by the San Diego Chargers in the second round of the 2001 NFL Draft, but only saw action in one game during his rookie season.

He won the starting job from Doug Flutie before the 2002 season, and was a usable starter, but did nothing of note. His second season as a starter was a disaster, and he lost his starting job back to Flutie midway through the season. When San Diego picked up Philip Rivers on Draft Day in 2004, it appeared that Brees was headed out of town, but that isn't quite what happened.

His impending replacement seemed to wake him up, and he started to show flashes of his future brilliance in 2004, putting up 3159 yards and 27 touchdowns with only 7 interceptions. He also had his first playoff appearance, although it ended quickly, going down 20-17 in the wild card round. He was about as good in 2005, but tore his labrum and rotator cuff in his throwing shoulder in the final game of the season, and San Diego did not want to commit much to him, so he walked away, signing with New Orleans, which turned out to be the best decision he ever made.

In his first season with the Saints, he led the league in passing with 4418 yards, which would turn out to be one of the lowest totals of his Saints career, and led the Saints to the playoffs, one season after they finished 3-13. Not only did they make the playoffs, they went clear to the NFC Championship Game, where they fell to the Bears, but it was just the start of something great.

After putting up nearly the same numbers in 2007 but missing the playoffs, he had an amazing season in 2008, becoming only the second player in league history to reach 5000 yards, coming up just 15 yards short of breaking Dan Marino's 24-year-old record. He also led the league with 34 touchdown passes, but New Orleans missed the playoffs again, making his amazing season a little less meaningful.

In 2009 he had the lowest passing yard total of his Saints career, reaching "only" 4388, but did lead the league with 34 touchdowns, and New Orleans led the NFC with a 13-3 record. He had a great postseason, throwing three touchdowns in each of the playoff games leading up to the Super Bowl, which was a first in Saints history. In the Super Bowl, he outplayed Peyton Manning by throwing 288 yards and 2 touchdowns as the Saints won 31-17, earning Brees the Super Bowl MVP.

His follow-up season wasn't quite as good, with 4620 yards, 33 touchdowns, and a career-high 22 interceptions, and the Saints ended up losing in the wild card round. 2011, however, was a different story, as he destroyed Dan Marino's yardage record, breaking it with a week to spare and ending up with 5476. He also led the league in touchdowns with 46 and set another record with a 71.2% completion percentage. He was also great in the playoffs, throwing 466 yards and 3 touchdowns in a wild card win, then throwing 462 yards and 4 touchdowns in a loss to the 49ers in the divisional round.

The Saints were severely hampered by the Bountygate scandal the next year, causing them to win only 7 games as several players and coaches were suspended during the season, but Brees was his usual awesome self, leading the league with 5177 yards and 43 touchdowns. He also became the first and only player to reach 5000 yards in consecutive seasons.

In 2013 he did it again, passing for 5162 yards and 39 touchdowns, but was overshadowed by Peyton Manning breaking his yardage record by a single yard while setting the touchdown record as well. He did get the full-strength Saints back to the playoffs, but they only reached the second round of the playoffs.

The 2014 season was a bit of a disappointment for Brees, as he missed the 5000 yards plateau for the first time in 4 years, ending the season just short at 4952, which was still enough to lead the league, and the Saints missed the playoffs despite playing in the weakest division. While that would still be considered a career year for most players, for Brees it was a little lackluster.

The last 4 years have been full of records and milestones. In 2015 he tied the record for touchdown passes in a game with 7. He also led the league in passing yards for the season, and repeated the feat in 2016, giving him 7 seasons as the top dog, which is also a record. He also surpassed 5000 yards again in 2016 for the 5th time in his career, and he owns five of the eleven 5000 yard seasons in history, with 6 others (Tom Brady, Peyton Manning, Dan Marino, Patrick Mahomes, Ben Roethlisberger, and Matthew Stafford) reaching that level once each.

In 2018, he broke 2 of the big passing records, breaking Brett Favre's record for career completions in Week 3, then breaking Peyton Manning's record for career yardage in Week 5. He is also within striking distance of Peyton's career touchdown record this season, needing only 20 to become the all-time leader, though Tom Brady is also right on his heels, needing only 23 himself.

Brees has had less playoff success than most of the other members of the top 10, but he did have a big Super Bowl victory and one other great playoff run two years later. What qualifies him to be this high is his record-setting passing. In addition to the records listed above, he also holds the record for most consecutive 4000 yard seasons, with 12, a streak that came to an end last season after he fell 8 yards short of that number. He also has the highest completion percentage in a season, which he has broken twice, and the highest in a career. He was the first QB ever to throw 40 touchdowns in back-to-back seasons, and holds the record for most consecutive games with a touchdown pass, breaking a very old record belonging to Johnny Unitas. There is no doubt that he is one of the greatest to ever play the game.