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In an NFL season as crazy as 2008 is turning out, it's good to see some shining stars emerging from the chaos. On one side we have Kurt Warner, past league MVP and Super Bowl champion leading ...

Warner Vs. Brees: Battle For The League MVP

by Sean O'Brien (Scribe)

22

306 reads

Stats

November 25, 2008


In an NFL season as crazy as 2008 is turning out, it's good to see some shining stars emerging from the chaos. 

On one side we have Kurt Warner, past league MVP and Super Bowl champion leading an Arizona team that has consistently underachieved over the years.

On the other, we have Drew Brees, a quarterback on pace to break Dan Marino's season passing record and the only player that gives his team a shot at the playoffs.

Near the beginning of the season, fan support was clearly on Brees's side.  His team's offense was explosive and the defense had at least improved since last year.  Even when the injury bug plagued the Saints, they could always rely on him to keep them in the game.

As the season progressed, Warner's MVP popularity grew.  The Cardinals were winning games and pulling away from the rest of their division for the first time in what seems like forever. 

But in the end, it will come down to a lot of variables. 

1.  Who is more important to the team?

Warner is surrounded by a talented corp of receivers to throw to, who have helped him amass a completion rating of nearly 70 percent.  The question is, how much of his success can be contributed solely to him compared to his receivers.

Brees, on the other hand, has had a medley of first and second stringers to throw to throughout the season.  The fact that all of them have been as successful seems to point to the one consistent factor: Brees behind center.

Could the Cardinals still win the weak NFC West without Warner?  Possibly.

Would the Saints still be in the playoff hunt without Brees?  No way.

Winner: Brees

2.  Who is having the most productive year?

Thus far, Warner has completed 302 of his 433 passes, putting his completion rating at 69.7 percent.  Warner has thrown 21 touchdown passes and only eight interceptions and his quarterback rating is 102.4.  He has also fumbled the ball nine times, losing six of them.

Brees, on the other hand, has thrown 424 passes and completed 286 of them.  His completion rating is 67.5 percent.  Brees has also thrown for 22 touchdowns and 11 interceptions.  His quarterback rating rests at a solid 99.9 and he has fumbled six times, only losing one of them.

Once again, arguments could be made that Warner's success is split between him and his receivers, but the stats say a lot.

Winner: Warner

3.  Who has played through the most controversy?

At the beginning of the year, we weren't even sure if we would see Warner behind center.  He and Matt Leinart were locked in a battle for first string.  Ultimately, Warner won and was given the starting job.

Looking back on his career, Warner has been shafted by some of his respective teams.  The Rams, who he led to the Super Bowl, cut him after one mediocre season.  After that, the Giants gave his starting job to soon-to-be Super Bowl MVP Eli Manning.

Then he coasts into Arizona and plays an above average 2007 season only to enter 2008 unsure of his standings in the organization.

Talk about a lot of disrespect.

Brees, on the other hand, was drafted by the San Diego Chargers as the first pick in the second round of the 2001 draft.  After spending five years with the Bolts, four as the starter, Brees was promptly handed the reigns to the struggling New Orleans Saints.  San Diego had decided to back Phillip Rivers as their quarterback.

In 2006, Brees and his team went on a miracle ride through the regular season.  Despite the turmoil their city was going through, the Saints played hard and even managed to win a few playoff games.  Had it not been for Brees, this team certainly would not have been as successful.

2007 was a disappointing season for the Saints, after they were projected to clinch their division again and maybe even see their first Super Bowl. 

Despite going 7-9 in 2007, Brees remained the starter in 2008.

Winner: Warner

By my estimation, at this point in the season the edge goes slightly to Warner.  However, if Brees and the Saints win out or go 10-6 and make the playoffs this year, it wouldn't be a long shot to say that Brees steals the crown.

What are your thoughts?

Author Poll

Who deserves the league MVP award?

  • Drew Brees
  • Kurt Warner
vote to see results
Author Poll Results

Who deserves the league MVP award?

  • Drew Brees

    52.2%

  • Kurt Warner

    47.8%
  • Total votes: 23
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22 comments Last one added 7 months ago — Leave a Comment

  1. Alexeiv Goodenov 7 months ago

    Wins matter.

    I'm sorry but that's how it works.

    No QB has ever won league MVP on a non-playoff team, ever. And there have been some pretty good seasons put up by QBs on loser teams.

    The Saints got the win against Green Bay, and good going, but even still, the chances of winning the NFC South for them is slim, and then we come down to the wildcard, even 6th seed may need 11 wins, and certainly will have to have at least 10.

    It all depends how the Saints do.

    That said, Brett Favre has a very good chance considering his popularity and the Jets going from 4-12 to 8-3 now and winning their division.

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    • Sean O'Brien 7 months ago

      You are very correct Alexeiv, thanks for the comment. Favre could definitely be mentioned in the race at this point. Who knows, maybe if he wins MVP and gets to the Super Bowl he will finally retire

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  2. Paul Davis 7 months ago

    "Despite going 7-9 in 2007, Brees remained the starter in 2008." Not exactly sure what you mean by that statement. Brees finished second behind Tom Brady in passing yards and set NFL records in completions and attempts in 2007. The Saints were not only in the playoff hunt late in december last year but also a division crown, but lost their last two consecutive games to finish two games behind the Bucs for first place and two games behind Washington for the final wild card spot.

    Granted, Warner is right now neck and neck with Brees for MVP and it could ultimately come down to whether or not the Saints make the playoffs for Brees to win. But with his record pace this season, if the Saints fall a game short and Brees surpasses Marino's single season record, it would be very hard to argue against him.

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    • Sean O'Brien 7 months ago

      Not saying Brees should have been benched, just comparing experiences between the two. Warner played well in Arizona that year but still faced a QB controversy, Brees did not (rightly so).

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  3. Michael Inglis 7 months ago

    I sure hope Favre doesn't win the MVP or a Super Bowl because then these guys on espn would never shut up about how "great" he is.

    Eli Manning should get some consideration but he will hurt by the fact that he has a great running game. Warner has a decent running game and Brees basically has none.

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  4. Ari Horing 7 months ago

    How is Brees more valuable. Even when Boldin was out, Warner didn't miss a beat. Not to mention Warner is playing with a worse running game than Brees is. By the way Lance Moore is a very good receiver. He isn't just a product of the playing with Brees like people are trying to say.

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    • Sean O'Brien 7 months ago

      Lance Moore is a good receiver. Is he a Boldin or a Fitzgerald? No. Brees is more valuable to his team because he's been a consistent leader and brought this team up from medicocrity to contention in just his first season with them.

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  5. Goober Taylor 7 months ago

    If you limit the discussion to just Warner vs. Brees, then obviously Brees is clearly the MVP out of those two. Brees has thrown TD passes to some guys that I doubt he even knew their first name. The guy has had a different core of receivers and running backs virtually every game of the year, yet he gets it done. My grandmother could throw TDs to Boldin and Fitzgerald.

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    • Sean O'Brien 7 months ago

      Lol. Believe me, between the two I would much rather see Brees get the MVP. Being realistic though, his performance has been overshadowed by the Cards all but clinching the NFC West and getting to the playoffs. Like I said, if Brees can lift his team the next 5 games he will put down the doubters.

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  6. Neil Melms 7 months ago

    I would vote for Brees simply because Warner has the better personnel compare to Brees. While I wouldn't say that Warner isn't a capable QB if he had half the amount of talent of a Boldin, Fitz, and even Breaston but his chances of being a much better QB is significantly higher compare to Drew.

    Also Arizona plays in the worst division in the NFL while the Saints have to contend against a division consisting of the Bucs, Panthers, and a "rebuilding" Falcons.

    Now I have to admit that I really don't quite know what the exact criteria of an MVP that the voters are looking for, but I would pick Brees over Warner if it is just between those two players.

    On a sidenote, Calvin "Megatron" Johnson should get the MVP. The guy doesn't have to play for the Silly Nannies otherwise known as the Lions but the guy just continues to play hard. It would be easy to count the money and dreaming of summer vacation but week in and week out, he continues to perform and that deserves a lot of respect even if you are not a fan of Detroit.

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  7. Kent Nguyen 7 months ago

    Just because the Saints D sucks shouldn't rule Brees out of MVP consideration.

    I think its more impressive considering his team is only 6-5. He's producing in spite of them.

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  8. Bill Ivie 7 months ago

    I am currently disagreeing with your arguement. You are leaving out one guy...Kerry Collins. He's just winning, baby...So you may want to choke on that SLAPNUTS!!!!

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    • Sean O'Brien 7 months ago

      Lol. Kerry Collins is having a pretty good year, but to say he is playing at anywhere near the level of Brees or Warner is just ignorant. The man inherited a playoff team that has a great defense and an awesome running game. If New Orleans had even one of those it would be right up with the Titans (or above them) in the power rankings. Arizona practically doesn't have a running game as well.

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  9. John Parker 7 months ago

    Drew Brees is a decent quarterback on a bad team who's just getting too many opprotunities to sling the ball and even if he gets 5000 yards because his team is despearate
    how can a quarterback be so amazing if his team doesn't make the playoffs?

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  10. Alexeiv Goodenov 7 months ago

    Ok dumbos, here's a breakdown of some great candidates who did not win because of being on a non-playoff team:

    1986:

    Marino piles up over 600 more yards than 2nd place, leads in completions by 68, and in passing TDs by 19 ( 44 to 25 ).

    Who wins?

    Lawrence Taylor with 20.5 sacks ( record ) on the 14-2 Giants.

    LT remains the last d-man to win the award.

    Marino's Dolphins finished 8-8 and out of the playoffs.

    Let that be a lesson to you.

    Warner has caught up in yards if you haven't noticed, less than 100 away, so if Brees finishes with let's say 5,168 yards and Warner gets 5,002.

    Warner will win the MVP by more than three times the votes.

    Guaranteed.

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  11. James Williamson 7 months ago

    Warner should win because without him that team would have a losing record. The Saints have a good running game and they would win more than the Cardinals. Warner also gets my vote because of the Comeback he has produced.

    Warner should win by a landslide and will be an official lock for the Hall of Fame.

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  12. dan phillips 7 months ago

    First the fact of who the QB's has for reciever means nothing who wins the MVP .
    Come Warner has the pure crap of a team called the Cardinals .
    I am from St Louis this team always been crap they have to make the Cubs
    look like pure gold when it come to sport teams.

    So any QB that can do what Warner is doing is worth the MVP ...

    Warner is the whole team and he surely going to throw some picks and still fumble
    because he has to throw every down.

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  13. Paul Augustin, Jr. 7 months ago

    In a Brees vs. Warner debate, my pick would be Brees. The stats are almost the same. The records are almost the same. The Cardinals' record is a by-product of one of the all-time worst divisions. Warner's main supporting cast (Fitzgerald, Boldin, Breaston, and Hightower) have only missed a combined two games. Both of those were the two that Boldin missed a few weeks ago.

    Brees has not been able to lean on any one or two guys to help him make plays. Brees' main supporting cast (Colston, Moore, Shockey, and Bush) have missed 13 games. Of that group, only Moore hasn't missed a game.

    My MVP is not Brees OR Warner.

    Favre has led the Jets to a remarkable turnaround with an 8-3 record and a first place standing in a very competitive division. Favre's down field ability has allowed the Jets to average almost 30 points a game.

    Brees would only be MVP if Saints make playoffs.

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