NFL Honors 2012: Drew Brees a Lock for AP Offensive Player of the Year

Take a few sniffs around the Internet, and you'll get the sense that the NFL MVP race is between two players: Aaron Rodgers and Drew Brees.

I'm not about to argue the point. Both Rodgers and Brees were brilliant in 2011, leading their respective teams to outstanding seasons. The Green Bay Packers don't go 15-1 without Rodgers and the New Orleans Saints don't go 13-3 without Brees.

Honestly, this could be a case where co-MVPs are absolutely necessary. We've seen it before (2003), and I wouldn't be at all outraged if we saw it again.

I'll say this, though: There's no competition when it comes to Offensive Player of the Year. That honor must go to Brees.

We have never seen a season like the one Brees just had. All he did was complete 71.2 percent of his passes while throwing for 5,476 yards, 46 touchdown passes and just 14 interceptions. His quarterback rating was 110.6.

Brees' completion percentage of 71.2 is a new NFL record, breaking the record of 70.6 that was set by him in 2009.

Brees' 5,476 yards are a new NFL record, shattering Dan Marino's high of 5,084 yards set in 1984.

Brees' 46 touchdowns are not a new NFL record, sadly. He fell four short of Tom Brady's record of 50. However, Brees' 46 touchdown passes did lead the league this season, and they are a new career-high for Brees. His previous career-high was 34, a mark that Brees accomplished twice. He beat it by 12.

Brees' QB rating of 110.6 was another career-high, just barely edging the mark of 109.6 that he set in 2009.

In short, it was a pretty amazing season. Odds are we'll never see another one like it, by Brees or anyone else.

That alone would be a good enough argument for why Brees deserves Offensive Player of the Year honors, but it helps that there's really no competition for him.

Rodgers, Brady and Matthew Stafford all had excellent seasons, but it would be a borderline tragedy if the OPotY went to a quarterback other than Brees. That just wouldn't make sense.

You could make a case for Rob Gronkowski, who set new NFL records for receiving yards (1,327) and touchdowns (17) by a tight end, but those numbers don't quite stack up against the numbers Brees put up. Calvin Johnson is another guy who had a great season (1,681 receiving yards and 16 touchdowns), but his numbers don't hold a candle to Brees' either.

Aside from those two, nobody's even close.

It's an open and shut case, really, Just like it was when Brees won the Offensive Player of the Year back in 2008. He was the only choice then, and he's the only choice now.