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New Orleans Saints Coach Sean Payton says Drew Brees' job description changed in 2012

Phoenix -- Telepathy was about the only route New Orleans Saints Coach Sean Payton could use to instruct Drew Brees on how to cure some of his 2012 season passing woes. That didn't work. Payton tried talking to the TV during games, but that didn't work either.

"I would be shouting it on the couch like, 'Hey, well you know. That might be something that I would be saying at that moment over the headset.' So yeah," a resigned Payton said during the NFL owners meetings this week.

Payton knew Brees wasn't the same quarterback last season, much like the Saints weren't the same team as the bounty scandal benched Payton for the season. Brees had a down year by his standards even though many of his statistics would still be a career season for most NFL quarterbacks.

Brees led the league in passing yards (5,177) and passing touchdowns (43) for the second consecutive season. Plus, Brees was the starting quarterback at the Pro Bowl.

But the former Super Bowl MVP saw his completion percentage dip dramatically after completing only 63 percent of his passes in 2012, which ranked 10th in the NFL. He also tied for the league-lead in interceptions with Dallas' Tony Romo (19 picks). Plus, Brees originally missed the Pro Bowl and became the starter once the other three passers couldn't play in the league's all-star game.

Usually, one could say as Brees goes, the team goes. Payton may not argue against that theory as the erratic 2012 season led to Brees and the Saints finishing 7-9 and missing the postseason for the first time since 2008.

But Payton pointed to two key factors as to why Brees didn't have a Brees-type year.

"The first thing that became apparent, and I'm alluding to what I said earlier, you try to evaluate the type of job the quarterback has," Payton said this week. "His two greatest allies are a good defense, one that can turn the ball over, and a decent or good running game. And if you went back, '11 we won, '10 we won, '09 we won 16, '06 we won. In those four seasons, we had balance and we ran the football.

"In '09, we were sixth in the league in rushing during our Super Bowl season. You wouldn't maybe necessarily guess that, but the point being is the ability to play defense and run the football are two great allies for good quarterback play. When you tell me a team is last in the league in defense and last in the running game, I'm telling you the quarterback's job description is entirely different.

"I'm telling you he's having to play and press and try to do certain things that his counterpart may not have to do based on the way that team is running the ball or playing defense. That's the first thing that I saw. You get one-dimensional, you find yourself in these games where you're not controlling the game."

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