Drew Brees and the Evolution of the NFL Quarterback

When Drew Brees threw for his 5,085th yard in Week 16, people everywhere went crazy. While their reaction to a record being broken that has stood since 1984 is understood, it really shouldn't be that surprising.

You see, the position of quarterback in the NFL is evolving. With defensive players becoming stronger, faster and more athletic, quarterbacks have been forced to improve and evolve.

Just look at the chart below to see my point:

  Year               Top Passer           Yards           4,000-Yard Passers

1990	Warren Moon	4,689	1
1991	Warren Moon	4,690	1
1992	Dan Marino	4,116	1
1993	John Elway	4,030	2
1994	Drew Bledsoe	4,555	3
1995	Brett Favre	4,413	4
1996	Mark Brunell	4,367	3
1997	Jeff George	3,917	0
1998	Brett Favre	4,212	2
1999	Steve Beuerlein	4,436	5
2000	Peyton Manning	4,413	3
2001	Kurt Warner	4,830	2
2002	Rich Gannon	4,689	4
2003	Peyton Manning	4,267	2
2004	Daunte Culpepper	4,717	5
2005	Tom Brady	4,110	2
2006	Drew Brees	4,418	5
2007	Tom Brady	4,803	7
2008	Drew Brees	5,069	6
2009	Matt Schaub	4,770	10
2010	Philip Rivers	4,710	5
2011	Drew Brees	5,476	10

As you can see from the information above, where 4,000 passing yards used to be a rare feat before 2005, it has now basically become the norm.

In fact, from 1990 to 2005, there were only 40 4,000-yard passing seasons. When you compare that to 2006-11, there were 43 4,000-yard passing seasons, with four 5,000-yard passing seasons.

That isn't to say that throwing for 4,000 yards in a season isn't impressive, it just isn't as impressive. Before 2006, Dan Marino's 5,084-yards seemed untouchable. However, with the league becoming more of a passer-friendly league, it became more and more apparent that Marino's record would finally be broken.

This year, it was Brees who broke it. Next year, it might be Matthew Stafford, Aaron Rodgers or Brees again who breaks the new record of 5,476 passing yards.

With the evolution of the quarterback, no NFL record is safe, and we shouldn't be surprised when they start falling more frequently.