Lions vs. Saints: Why Drew Brees Will Shred Detroit's Secondary

There’s no question that New Orleans Saints’ quarterback Drew Brees has had a season like no QB before him, breaking Dan Marino’s record for total yardage (5,079) while leading the Saints to 13 wins.

More than that, he’s the complete quarterback, which spells plenty of trouble Saturday night for the Detroit Lions in the Superdome as the two teams open play in the NFL playoffs.

When Brees sets up behind center, he seems to have an uncanny sense of what the defense is trying to do, and he’s got a plan to exploit it.

Defenses try to disguise what they’re doing, but his ability to see through the façade makes Brees as tough as any quarterback to defend.

On top of that, Brees directs an offense of great balance. Led by Darren Sproles, Pierre Thomas, Mark Ingram and Chris Ivory, the Saints have rushed for 2,127 yards with each of those four players having racked up 374 or more yards.

It’s hard to say if tight end Jimmy Graham (99 catches, 1,310 yards) and wide receivers Marques Colston (80 catches, 1,143 yards, 14.3 yards to per catch) and Robert Meacham (40 catches, 15.5 yards per catch) and Devery Henderson (30 catches, 17.7 yards per catch) would have this kind of success with another quarterback, but they are perfectly suited for Brees, as is Sproles, who has caught 86 passes.

More than that, the Lions have been troubled by good passing games. They’ve allowed 239.4 yards per game, 22^nd in the NFL this year.

All-in-all, Brees is in position to open the playoffs with a big game.