How good is Drew Brees, really?

[BwareDWare94 723]

Drew Brees has 48 INTs over the last 3 seasons. 16 per year on average. He's a great quarterback but when all is said and done those high INT numbers will come into play. He has to turn the ball over less.

84 INTs over 5 years.

Romo 55 over 5 years

Rodgers 36 over 5 years

Brady 44 over 5 years

Ben 50 over 5 years

Peyton 69 over 5 years (went back 6 years because of the season he missed)

Rivers 79 over 5 years

So of the top 7 QBs who have been active over the past 5 years, Drew Brees is only approached in INT numbers by Phillip Rivers. He also has 29 fumbles (I don't know how many were lost).

What I'm basically saying is that Drew Brees is massively overrated. He has had stellar, legendary seasons but he is not that great all the time, which is how he's perceived.

What are your thoughts?

[RazorStar 4,025]

I think Drew Brees is capable of incredible games and being up there with the best of QB's. I also think his volume stats are vastly inflated and throwing more times per game will lead to having a lower efficiency rating, along with throwing more INT's.

 

Brees has 84 INT's in 3294 attempts at a rate of 2.55%

Rivers has 77 INT's in 2764 attempts at a rate of 2.79%

Romo has 55 INT's in 2353 attempts at a rate of 2.34%

Peyton has 53 INT's in 2518 attempts at a rate of 2.10%

Roethlisberger has 50 INT's in 2543 attempts at a rate of 1.97%

Brady has 44 INT's in 2950 attempts at a rate of 1.49%

Rodgers has 36 INTS in 2339 attempts at a rate of 1.54%

 

So while his INT rate is a bit higher, his large volume of throws compared to his contemporaries at least makes up for that. Brees is capable of completely shitting the bed though, especially against the Rams. I'd say his bad games are a fair deal worse than the other elite QB's bad games, aside from Peyton.

[BradyFan81 404]

Really fucking good

[Bay 2,003]

Almost completing 70% last two seasons, strong YPA. I admit thought he may be declining, but it really doesn't look like it.

 

Every QB fumbles alot. There are some terrible INTs, sure. TD:INT ratio is good.

 

7th best all time. QB rating always high.

[Milla4Prez63 678]

Brees is no longer a top 5 QB in the league as of today, IMO. But he's still had an incredible career, becoming a true franchise QB and leading a franchise that has been a bottom feeder for so long to a Super Bowl championship and many years of contending. As a fan of a division rival, I can not stand Brees but I admire his success and what he did for the Saints franchise. I think you could make a case for him being a top 10 QB all time honestly.

[DBR96A 87]

I believe Drew Brees is an all-time great QB and a first-ballot Hall-of-Famer, but still somewhat overrated. He's thrown for lots of yards and TD passes, and he's broken several records, but he's also turned the ball over at a pretty high rate throughout his career. He has 26 games with at least four TD passes in his career, but he also has 15 games with at least three INTs. And just last season, I remember him directly costing his team wins against the Lions, 49ers and Ravens with ill-timed turnovers. Basically, Brees at his best has been amazing to watch, but at his worst he's been horrific. The variance in his performance has to be one of the highest among the all-time great QBs.

[oochymp 2,393]

well, Razor basically said what I was going to say but did it better (he actually looked up stats, I was just gonna say he's a volume thrower)

 

I will add that Brees has probably my favorite stat as the only QB to throw for 5000 yards in a season without a 1000 yard receiver, granted Colston was on pace but got hurt that year, but that's still impressive

[Sarge+ 3,436]

He's an all time great. No questions asked. Look up his playoff numbers.

[seanbrock 1,684]

Also think about this, how good are any of those Saints teams outside of Brees. They've had defenses that were adept at forcing turnovers and a long with Brees running that offense that's what won them a Super Bowl. I know it's easy to say that a team would be nothing without their franchise QB, but I think Brees holds that team up more so than most other QB's do their teams.

[Favre4Ever+ 4,476]

Brees is really good.

However, if we are going to justify his turnovers by saying he throws more, we also need to be sure to put his big TD and Yardage numbers under that same microscope. He's had a really solid career, has the Super Bowl.. Him pre-Saints doesn't really do a lot for me and honestly.. being a "volume thrower" for me... Carries somewhat of a negative connotation.

When I think of volume throwers, I also think of guys like Matthew Stafford. Not to say Stafford is on Brees' level... But if I am talking about Brees and his accomplishments, comparisons like that don't exactly help him, in my book. So in the grand scheme of things... In the large scope of NFL History, I'd say he's slightly overrated.

He's had one of the better careers of any QB of this generation, he's done some nice things, but... At the end of the day, there are other guys both now and in history that I would rather talk about.

[Vin+ 3,121]

You know, my opinion of Brees is what the majority of people on here feel about PeyPey.

 

Kinda funny, really.

[ATL_Predator+ 1,196]

Brees isn't that great. When you throw the ball as much as he does, you'll have nice numbers. Also.

 

If the Saints weren't actively targeting QB's like Warner and Favre during that playoff run...and Peyton didn't shit the bed. Brees would just be another above average QB.

 

He's never impressed me and he is certainly on the decline. Also, Sean Payton as your signal caller does wonders too.

 

 

He's above average, but I wouldn't call him elite.

[seanbrock 1,684]

idk man. Brees passes my eye test too. He has good pocket presence, awareness and footwork and he's one of the most deadly accurate passers I've seen. Those are the things that make him great and honestly what makes you more money in this league than those 3 assets?

[Bucman 891]

Brees was great before Sean Payton..

[BwareDWare94 723]

The way I look at is this--the NFL only has 2 legitimately elite quarterbacks--Rodgers and Brady. After that, you've got a short list of great quarterbacks like Ben, Romo, Rivers, Peyton, and Brees, and then after that you've got your good/capable of helping team win a Super Bowl quarterbacks like Ryan, Cam, Wilson, Flacco, Eli, etc.

 

To me, Brees is capable of being elite, but he'd have to be used better. More runs, less passing, more time taken off the clock. You could say that Sean Payton is great with Drew Brees, and to an extent he is, but say New Orleans fixes this supposedly suspect running game 4-5 years ago and they can adopt a more traditional offense. Less turnovers, less defensive struggles, more wins, maybe another Super Bowl victory. The year they won it, they were perfect within the system. I think they've had the talent and the opportunities to do it again, but their system did them in.

[Bay 2,003]

Brees was great before Sean Payton..

Eh... wouldn't exactly call his SD days great.

[Favre4Ever+ 4,476]

The way I look at is this--the NFL only has 2 legitimately elite quarterbacks--Rodgers and Brady. After that, you've got a short list of great quarterbacks like Ben, Romo, Rivers, Peyton, and Brees, and then after that you've got your good/capable of helping team win a Super Bowl quarterbacks like Ryan, Cam, Wilson, Flacco, Eli, etc.

 

To me, Brees is capable of being elite, but he'd have to be used better. More runs, less passing, more time taken off the clock. You could say that Sean Payton is great with Drew Brees, and to an extent he is, but say New Orleans fixes this supposedly suspect running game 4-5 years ago and they can adopt a more traditional offense. Less turnovers, less defensive struggles, more wins, maybe another Super Bowl victory. The year they won it, they were perfect within the system. I think they've had the talent and the opportunities to do it again, but their system did them in.

Ya, the way I look at it is this. 20... 30 years from now, how are we going to remember Brees and how will we talk about him? Me? If somebody were to bring him up I would probably say something along the lines of, "Oh ya, I got to watch him play. He was pretty good, put up some big numbers for a while".

 

My next sentences would encompass the other great (and superior QBs) who played during this era that overshadowed Brees. Guys like Peyton -- yes, I hate him, and I would also say he's overrated in the scope of NFL history (but still better than Brees, IMO)... Tom Brady, again not a guy I like very much. Then you have two of my favorite QBS of ALL TIME.

 

Aaron Rodgers, who may end up being the greatest to ever play the game (maybe I'm biased) and Ben Roethlisberger who does literally everything. Both guys great at what they do, and are SO FUN to watch.

 

You want to talk about Drew Brees? Fine. But the conversation will quickly divert to other, better QBs of the same era as it rightfully should. He will be remembered as a good player, but time will lose him in the shuffle, IMO.

[RazorStar 4,025]

He's not quite the Trent Green of this era. Then again, Trent Green's prime had Rich Gannon, Jeff Garcia and healthy Kurt Warner as the stalwarts... so maybe he is Trent Green?

[seanbrock 1,684]

When somebody brings up Drew Brees 20 years from now I'll probably remember him pretty well. For one I think he's the most accurate passer I've ever seen but he's also got a pretty great story. under 6' QB who was taken in the second round. By passed when the Chargers drafted Eli Manning and then traded Eli for Rivers. The guy tears his labrum and messes his rotator cuff up. Everybody says he's done and then he goes and signs with the Saints, the most laughable franchise in league history. Then in just 3 years wins a super bowl with the Saints.

 

Of the QB's of this era I would take Rodgers, Brady and Ben over him but not Manning and I'd rate all of those guys pretty damn high on the greatest QB of all time list including Manning to be honest.

[Favre4Ever+ 4,476]

You're not wrong about anything. But for me, I don't think those things are gonna come up down the road. The short QB thing? Don't care. 2nd rounder? Meh. I don't really give him more credit than guys like Sean for turning the Saints around. Will remember his Super Bowl -- but for me I won't remember his MVP or anything.

More than Drew brees winning, I will remember that Super Bowl because Peyton lost. Down 7 (after being up by 10) and with 3 minutes left on the clock, Peyton throws the ball into the waiting arms of Tracy Porter for a 70 yard pick six.

lol Peyton.

[Sarge+ 3,436]

He's a lock for Hall of Fame. Definitely deserves it too IMO.

[Turry 755]

Drew Brees performed very well in the playoffs. Lowest int rate in the playoffs in the nfl history. 24 tds to 6 ints. Better passer rating in the playoffs than some other "elite qbs" and all time greats as well as completion percentage.

 

56,000 yds 396 tds 194 ints. How good is Drew Brees well lets just say hes a lock for the HOF. Some of you guys who are hating on him yall must be smoking more weed than me because that's fucked up logic.

Edited August 9, 2015 by monstersofthemidway

[AL_Royalty 489]

Drew Brees is one of the best QB's of this generation. The guy was underrated in his prime, and now that age is showing, he's still a great QB. The guy does amazing things.

[Jayrus 51]

Much as I dislike the Saints, I have nothing but respect for Drew Brees. The man plays out of his mind year in, and year out. After viewing his career stats his numbers don't really seem to have regressed at all. Strange considering many people, including myself, are under the impression he's regressed. It begs the question whether it's Brees that's regressed, or whether it's the team that's regressed around him.

 

I would say Brees has been, and still is, playing elite football. He is definitely still a Top 5 quarterback coming into this year. The struggles the Saints have had that suggested otherwise would appear to be down to the level of talent around him dropping since their superbowl year, and nothing to do with Brees himself at all.

[Dutch 874]

The madness in this thread really needs to stop. Anyone claiming that Brees is not elite or is not going to be talked about with this generation of great QBs is being foolish or just sipping on some haterade. The volume argument doesn't work with Brees because we have the likes of Qb's like Matthew Stafford to compare with. When you talk about volume inflation, there are other stats that are indicators that give a testament of how good or bad the player really is.

 

Int ratio and accuracy is always a good indicator. The more attempts you have, the more chances you have to throw interceptions and mess up the completion percentage. However, when you DO consider how much Brees throws the ball and look at his int ratio and his completion percentage, it's absolutely incredible how well he did.

 

Just looking at the last 5 years:

 

2014

 

Comp Att Pct% Yards Avg TD Int

456 659 69.2 4,952 7.5 33 17

 

Int % 2.60

 

2013

 

Comp Att Pct % Yards Avg TD Int

 

446 650 68.6 5,162 7.9 39 12

 

 

Int% 1.8

 

2012

 

Completion Attempts Pct % Yards Avg TD Int

 

422 670 63.0 5,177 7.7 43 19

 

Int% 2.80

 

2011

 

Completion Attempts Pct % Yards Avg TD Int

 

468 657 71.2 5,476 8.3 46 14

 

Int% 2.10

 

2010

 

Completion Attempts Pct% Yards Avg TD Int

 

448 658 68.1 4,620 7.0 33 22

 

Int % 3.30 - Threw a lot of picks this year

 

 

As stated earlier, the more you through, the higher chances they will have a higher int ratio %; that's common logic. So like Razor pointed out, his int ratio balances out. But when you consider how much more Brees threw the ball compared to the rest of the elite Qbs, some 80-100 more attempts per year, then you get to appreciate how accurate Drew Brees really is. His completion % pales in comparison to some of the other elite Qbs and they threw a considerable amount less than Brees did. Brees accuracy numbers are ridiculous throwing as much as he did. And please don't forget how historically bad the Saints defense was and how much Brees had to carry this team.

 

So Brees numbers aren't some production of inflation like Matthew Stafford throwing 600+ attempts a year and barely cracking 60%. Brees is the real deal and a lock for first ballot Hall of Fame. His stats crush a lot of the other elite Qbs. And like MoTM brought out, Brees smashes the other QBs in playoff performances.

 

Stop the madness.

Edited August 10, 2015 by Dutch