New Orleans Saints Forums - blackandgold.com - Article Chase Daniel's Drew Brees-like showing proves most impressive for New Orleans Saints

The New Orleans Saints' 38-20 exhibition victory against the Houston Texans was his first appearance since he became the official King of New Orleans in February.

But the MVP on this night was another Saints quarterback, Chase Daniel, who put on a Brees-like show, to the delight of the sellout crowd of 70,025.
Brees left the game after one quarter of work and tossed the keys to the Saints' high-powered offense to Daniel, the diminutive waterbug who torpedoed the Texans for the final three quarters.

Daniel tossed touchdown passes to three receivers and directed scoring drives of 51, 83, 65 and 60 yards. But beyond the stats, he showed the kind of moxie that made him a cult hero at the University of Missouri, where he earned comparisons to Brees.

And no one was more impressed by Daniel's performance than Brees, who became the young quarterback's mentor throughout the offseason when the pair were the only two quarterbacks on the roster.

"I was really proud of Chase," Brees said. "He's worked extremely hard this offseason. He's had success despite the odds throughout his career. He wins games, and he makes plays. There's something to be said for that."
Daniel looked exactly the way Sean Payton wants his quarterbacks to look: calm, confident and in total control. He moved teammates around at the line of scrimmage like a conductor and audibled to checks before the snap.

He flawlessly executed a four-minute drill before halftime, marching the Saints 83 yards in 11 plays for a touchdown on the final play of the half.
On the drive, he displayed all of his skills. He showed his arm strength on a perfectly placed 48-yard pass to Adrian Arrington down the seam of the Texans' Cover-2 defense. He displayed his wheels on a 9-yard scramble to convert a third-and-3 inside the Texans' 20-yard line. Then his showed his wiliness in calmly working the clock in the final seconds and conserving just enough time to set the table for a 1-yard touchdown pass to Zak Keasey on the final play.
"I think I played pretty well," Daniel said. "I was confident in the huddle, and our playmakers made some great plays. Obviously, there were some mistakes, but I was pretty happy with how I played."
Among the mistakes was a duck of an interception in third quarter that led to a Texans field goal. He later failed to snap the ball before the play clock expired, leading to a delay-of-game penalty.

Otherwise, it was hard to find fault with his 15-of-21 passing, 182-yard night.

Coach Sean Payton said he wanted to get a long look at Daniel, especially with the first- and second-team offensive units. It was the most extended action of Daniel's nascent career, and while Saints fans undoubtedly were thrilled by the performance, Payton still found plenty of nits to pick.
"There were some good things," Payton said. "His job is to move the football and score. I thought he did that. But his job is not to throw interceptions and his job is not to let the clock run out and get delay-of-game penalties. There's a lot of things for him to work on. The repetitions, you really can't simulate. I wanted him to get a lot of snaps. There'll be a lot of good tape for him. That'll be a good experience for him."

Daniel is the definition of gamer. He's not the most spectacular practice player in the world, but the guy turns it on when the lights come on and the competition intensifies. From Monday to Saturday, he's ordinary. But on game days, he's often extraordinary.

In that respect, he reminds me of Jake Delhomme. Saints fans crucified Jim Haslett and Mike McCarthy for not playing Delhomme over Aaron Brooks in the early 2000s. But the fact is Delhomme was a terrible practice player. He never showed enough in practice to warrant starting over Brooks. But when the lights came on, Delhomme was money. The guy, as Rick Venturi once told me, had ice water in his veins.

Daniel responds similarly to pressure. Competition brings out the best in him, just as it does Brees, who Daniel compared post-game to a big brother.
"He thought I played well, and it's always good what he thinks, " Daniel said.

Chase Daniel's Drew Brees-like showing proves most impressive for New Orleans Saints | NOLA.com