I have a lot of mixed opinions on what several people are saying in here. First, I don't know why some make it sound like Brees was hot garbage before he came here. He was very good in his last couple of seasons in San Diego, and that was with the perennially awful Cam Cameron as his offensive coordinator. They let him go because he got hurt and they had already invested in a young QB before they knew Brees was going to turn it around.

So I disagree with those who say Payton made Brees. But I don't completely agree that Brees made Payton, either. I think Payton's system suits Drew and vice versa. But I don't think that Payton is anything close to a great coach at this point.

Being a coach is about more than drawing up plays. He mismanages his coaching staff, the clock, and has mismanaged several players over the last few years. He plays favorites with certain players just like he does with his coaches.

That doesn't make him a bad person, it just makes him a poor leader. This is a business, and you are paid a lot of money to make tough decisions and WIN. You can make as many excuses as you want about the injuries, but you can't deny all of the rest if you are honest with yourself. This is three years in a row of this team being a mess.

We have a good young nucleus, but until Payton cleans up the coaching staff and re-inserts some fire and discipline across the board, we might be a playoff team in the future, but I don't see us going far. Talent can overcome a lot, but it can't do it all. Payton must change the culture of favoritism and mediocrity or we'll need a new coach. Benson won't fire him, though.