NFL Football 2011: Why Drew Brees Is Quietly Outplaying Tom Brady in 2011

One of the greatest quarterbacks to ever play football is the media darling of the NFL, so I imagine it would come as a shocker if I said Drew Brees is outplaying him this year.

Because of the media’s love for Tom Brady, he will always be praised above the other quarterbacks in the league. I mean seriously, they’re still reluctant to call Aaron Rodgers the best player in the league, because of the perception of perfection that the media has created around Brady.

Well, news flash, Rodgers isn’t the only quarterback outplaying Brady this year, but the media won’t tell you that.

Brees has a 71 percent pass completion this season and Brady has a 66 percent pass completion, but again, Brady gets talked about far more than Brees does.

Most would argue, he should because he has three Super Bowl rings and is one of the greatest quarterbacks to ever play the game. And I would answer, you have a great point, but that quarterback down in the Big Easy isn’t too bad either.

In fact, I would go as far as to say he is outplaying Brady this year. No, I’m not crazy, and yes, I watch football. It’s pretty much my life.

But when you look at what Brees has done and what Brady has done, there’s a fair argument to be made that Brees is outplaying Brady.

The Numbers

Brees owns Brady in every category except for the interceptions department, and Brees only has one more interception.

Brees has thrown for over 3,000 yards while Brady has thrown for 2,700, he has thrown for 21 touchdowns while Brady has thrown 20 and he has six-tenths-of-a-point higher than Brady for his quarterback rating. While most of the numbers may be close, Brees is still one small step above Brady this year.

Brees leads the NFL in completions and yards, and he ranks second in touchdowns and quarterback rating. And it just so happens that the guy he ranks behind in touchdowns and quarterback rating is having one of the best seasons that I’ve seen.

3rd Down Efficiency

When it comes to converting third downs, there’s no one better in the league than Brees.
Brees leads the NFL in third down QB rating at 126.8, and he’s completed 74.1 percent, thrown for 844 yards and has eight touchdowns with two interceptions.

Crunch Time

Basically, the man is clutch. And I’m not saying Brady isn’t clutch because he’s proved it time and time again, but Brees has been the man when it comes to crunch time this year.

Just look at the Green Bay Packers game. Even though they were stopped short on a goal line stand, Brees rallied the Saints back from behind and posted gaudy stats in that ball game.

What about the comeback victory against the Carolina Panthers where he hit Pierre Thomas for the go-ahead touchdown and game winner with 50 seconds left in the game?

 
Final Opinion

I’ll always remember Brees as a clutch player and an absolute technician on the field, and he’s proving once again this year that he’s just as elite as Brady, Rodgers and Peyton Manning.

As for Brady, is he having another great year? Absolutely, he’s throwing a good amount of interceptions for what he normally does, but he’s still putting up impressive numbers. Just watch ESPN, they'll tell you all about it.

The sad thing is Brees is putting up even better numbers, and in the words of Biggie Smalls, ‘if you don’t know, now you know.