How does Drew Brees compare to the other prolific quarters of the NFL?

Drew Brees is a Pro Bowler eleven times. He is an offensive player of the year in the NFL twice. He has already won the Super Bowl. And after his 363-yard performance and three touchdowns against Washington on Monday, he is the league's most prolific quarterback.

So, is it possible that it is underestimated?

The Brees splendor was at the time the league's most friendly league for passers-by, while relaxed rules made it harder for wide receivers to cover, while outlawing almost all the different techniques to kick off the quarterback. As a result, QBs are playing longer than ever, exceeding more than any other generation before them, and generating strange statistics that may appear earlier on a broken screen. John Madden Football game than a real box score in 1992.

Brees was a product of this change, but he was not alone. The new era of aerial fireworks has rewritten the league's record books. Nine players have recorded at least 50,000 career passing yards in the NFL, including Brees' record of 72,103 (and over). Five of them are still active, one retired in 2016 and another retired in 2011.

So how does Brees compare to a group of peers including Tom Brady, Peyton Manning, Brett Favre, Ben Roethlisberger, Philip Rivers and, uh, Eli Manning? Let it break down. And not to be missed by anyone in this peer group, let's add Aaron Rodgers and Kurt Warner, a couple of contemporaries who have won a pair of the Most Valuable Player trophies.

Statistically, Brees is the greatest smuggler of his generation

The saints continually turned to Brees to bring their offense with a discouraging and sometimes overly exaggerated passing attack – and the veteran was happy to serve. After Monday, he now holds the league records for yards and assists, and ranks in the top five for touchdowns and QB rankings. Over the next two seasons, he and Brady will compete for Peyton Manning's eclipse to return to the end zone.

But Brees was not recognized for his grand prix as his peers

In terms of recognition, the lack of regular season MVP awards at Brees leaves him behind the Manning, Brady and Favre cohorts. But he has always been the offensive player in the league twice, a reward usually reserved for the voters of MVP's most valuable player before a slightly better player is reached. While Rodgers will likely overtake him according to our totally scientific standard below in the next few seasons, he will likely keep the advantage over Rivers, Roethlisberger and Eli Manning (in addition to beating the Hall of Famer Warner) when it's over. he wins major honors. .

In order to form a rudimentary filing system, here is what we deserved:

• MVP of the regular season = 5 points
• Offensive POY = 4 points
• Super Bowl MVP = 3 points
• Nod All-Pro of the first team = 2 points
• Pro Bowl Invitation = 1 point

Brees won Super Bowl, but his playoff record is not enough compared to his peers

For a quarterback to be really great, its success must translate into team success. The wave of defensive performances of New Orleans during his career has prevented Brees from being present in a sustainable post-season, although the Saints are well placed to spend two consecutive years in the playoffs after the start of the match against 4-1 in 2018.

This is where Brees 'only title and Brees' playoff record are measured against his colleagues. For the argumentation, here is our notation:

• Super Bowl wins = 5 points
• Super Bowl appearance = 3 points
• division title = 2 points
• playoff position = 1 point

Brees has produced big numbers despite a distribution of support that does not always match the NFL's elite

A good quarterback can thrive with excellent receivers. A great player can turn a poor performer corps into a championship unit. Some of Brees' peers were lucky enough to be part of a line full of star recipients. Peyton Manning could turn to well-placed stars like Reggie Wayne, Marvin Harrison and Demaryius Thomas. Warner had the biggest show on the grass to fuel his ascent to St. Louis, and Larry Fitzgerald, who was making his entry into life, for his revival in Arizona.

Brady, whose most targeted trio in New England was the always productive band of Wes Welker, Rob Gronkowski and Julian Edelman (with a cameo for more than three seasons from Randy Moss), is somewhere in between. The same goes for Brees, who built neglected project receivers such as Marques Colston, Lance Moore and Jimmy Graham (his three most targeted teammates) into a 1,000-yard threat. 2,317 of his 5,245 finals in New Orleans were awarded to players who were drafted in the seventh round or not at all.

This range has improved over time. Brandin Cooks and Michael Thomas have both become top-level underdogs after being selected by the club in the first two rounds of the NFL draft. But Brees was a reliable talented developer who gave his team opportunity to address other needs in the project and in free competition. In terms of receivers around him, only Eli Manning, Rivers and possibly Brady can claim fewer stars in his constellation of targets. There is no doubt that Brees wiped every talent from his teammates.

And few players are more important for their franchise than Brees for New Orleans

Brees did not start his career with the Saints, but he is destined to finish there as the most beloved player in franchise history. He won 123 games and counted on New Orleans. It's two more games that the Saints have won between their debuts in 1967 and 1990 – a period that covers 13 different starting quarters.

More importantly, he gave New Orleans their first NFL title by beating Peyton Manning at the Super Bowl XLIV, giving a rebuilding city a championship parade.

With the exception of Brady, no player in the Brees stratosphere can claim that singular identity that goes with his team. Peyton made the Colts all the more popular as long-term contenders, but his success in Denver diminished his connection with the franchise. The ups and downs of his career have made Eli a sponge that has received as much praise as critics in New York. Favre and Rodgers are struggling with the "best debate" ever held in Green Bay.

Rivers is passionate about shippers, but he lacks the high-profile success that would make him a franchise legend. Roethlisberger has two rings less at the Super Bowl than Terry Bradshaw. Warner has never played more than six seasons in one stop.

So yes, maybe Brees is underrated for his career

Brees is a leading talent whose garish numbers are often overlooked because of a sometimes-disappointing cast around him. The Saints, in their worst years, form a defenseless defense team that relies on their veteran quarterback to win shootout victories and record statistics that appear to have been copied and stuck after a Texas Tech loss to Oklahoma. At his best, he was the kind of quarterback who led the league in terms of completion percentage – which he has done four times, in 11 seasons and more wins.

In these glory years, Brees is the kind of player who turns late recruits, ignored prospects and former basketball stars into decisive players. Over the past 13 years, he has improved the saints and slowly progressed in history books. On Monday, he added another NFL record to his resume – and another key argument that belongs to the Brady-Manning debate about the best quarterback of his generation.