Drew Brees regains NFL's record for completion percentage in a season

01-01-2018, 12:10 PM

Where Brees must improve is on 3rd Downs...

%First Downs, Pass on 3rd Down

15 D. Brees NO 39.0 ( 57/146 )

blackangold · 01-01-2018, 12:33 PM

Originally Posted by burningmetal

I haven't followed the team, for reasons most know, but I'm not surprised he has regained this record given how his stats would seem to indicate he became more of a game manager this year. If he could complete 71% of his passes in a time when he aired it out more, he can surely do better in a conservative style.

The justification for his salary has always been that he's elite. I guess "elite" has a different meaning now, if people still think he should make 30 million or more. But, that's just my two cents from the outside looking in.

I would agree with you although most won’t.

Nothing wrong with being a game manager, but I would like to see Brees with more deep threats. This is the first year that we really only have 1 deep threat in Ginn, and Brees seems to miss him an awful lot. I can’t think of any other year we had less than 2 deep threats to stretch the field.

saintfan · 01-01-2018, 12:54 PM

Just imagine if Drew had a decent Tight End. Time and time again our WRs just aren't getting open, even when Thomas is double-teamed.

dizzle88 · 01-01-2018, 12:59 PM

Originally Posted by saintfan

Just imagine if Drew had a decent Tight End. Time and time again our WRs just aren't getting open, even when Thomas is double-teamed.

Why we let Ben Watson walk I'll never know.

One of the dumbest decisions we've made, even at age 38 he's better than Josh Hill and Fleener combined.

K Major · 01-01-2018, 01:10 PM

Side note - what happened to Willie Snead on 3rd downs ?? I saw him open a couple of times yesterday and Brees simply didn't throw in his direction. We will need Willie on Sunday.

burningmetal · 01-01-2018, 01:42 PM

Originally Posted by blackangold

I would agree with you although most won’t.

Nothing wrong with being a game manager, but I would like to see Brees with more deep threats. This is the first year that we really only have 1 deep threat in Ginn, and Brees seems to miss him an awful lot. I can’t think of any other year we had less than 2 deep threats to stretch the field.

Yeah, and I'm not saying being a game manager is bad either. I can't speak much for what he's doing, having not watched him, but I've looked at box scores and seen a few highlights. It just seems like he's perhaps not able to push the ball down field as much.

I know there aren't a lot of great receivers on the team, but that's kind of been the word throughout much of his time here, and people have always said Drew makes receivers better. I think he does make them better, when he's right, but there is something odd about his numbers this year.

They've run the ball better, but there have been games when they haven't, and the passing game hasn't been there to rescue the team like it used to.

iceshack149 · 01-01-2018, 04:31 PM

I remember arguing for Aaron Brooks years ago and brought up the fact that he was completing over 60% of his passes. That was pretty darn good.
This Brees cat is a freaking stud and doesn’t get near the credit he deserves for being one of the best QBs to ever play the game.

jeanpierre · 01-01-2018, 07:09 PM

Originally Posted by burningmetal

I haven't followed the team, for reasons most know, but I'm not surprised he has regained this record given how his stats would seem to indicate he became more of a game manager this year. If he could complete 71% of his passes in a time when he aired it out more, he can surely do better in a conservative style.

The justification for his salary has always been that he's elite. I guess "elite" has a different meaning now, if people still think he should make 30 million or more. But, that's just my two cents from the outside looking in.

What to do with Brees contract is the 800 lbs gorilla in the room for the offseason and should quickly be hotly debated...

Utah_Saint · 01-01-2018, 07:40 PM

You don't often hear the term "game manager" and 4000 yard season in the same sentence.

And nobody's ever heard of 8+ yards per attempt at a game managing completion percentage 72%.

Game managing GOAT.

burningmetal · 01-02-2018, 02:21 AM

Originally Posted by Utah_Saint

You don't often hear the term "game manager" and 4000 yard season in the same sentence.

And nobody's ever heard of 8+ yards per attempt at a game managing completion percentage 72%.

Game managing GOAT.

4,000 doesn't mean a whole lot anymore.

Who is considered the ultimate "game manager" in the NFL today? Alex Smith, right? Here are his stats this year:

CMP ATT YDS CMP% AVG TD LNG INT FUM QBR RAT
341 505 4,042 67.5 8.00 26 79 5 1 63.4 104.7

Here are Brees' stats:

CMP ATT YDS CMP% AVG TD LNG INT FUM QBR RAT
386 536 4,334 72.0 8.09 23 54 8 5 61.1 103.9

Does anyone consider Smith elite? From everything I know about this season, Brees has relied on his backs to make big plays out of check downs. High completion percentage does not indicate the opposite of a game manager, either. It's actually to be expected, because of the short passing game. I'm not suggesting this is a terrible thing, but I don't think Brees is playing at an elite level anymore. The guy who broke his previous record (Sam Bradford) is certainly not considered elite, and is at best a game manager. So what does that stat really mean in today's NFL? It's pretty hard to say anymore.

The close comparison to Alex Smith's numbers this season would seem to back up my point. If you want to pay top dollar for that kind of production, good luck to you. This is how the league has gotten to this point where the Andy Dalton's of the world are getting paid like franchise players. Severe over-valuing. And no, I'm not suggesting Drew has dipped to Dalton's level.

Just my observation.

(for some annoying reason, no matter what I do, the numbers will not line up correctly with the stat columns when I post it, but hopefully you can read it well enough.)

01-01-2018, 12:10 PM	#11
Threaded by jeanpierre Site Donor 2018 Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: Thibodaux Posts: 43,543 Blog Entries: 39 Rating: (0 votes - average) Where Brees must improve is on 3rd Downs... %First Downs, Pass on 3rd Down 15 D. Brees NO 39.0 ( 57/146 )
Views: 5498

01-01-2018, 12:33 PM	#12
blackangold 1000 Posts + Join Date: Aug 2011 Posts: 3,422	Re: Drew Brees regains NFL's record for completion percentage in a season Originally Posted by burningmetal I haven't followed the team, for reasons most know, but I'm not surprised he has regained this record given how his stats would seem to indicate he became more of a game manager this year. If he could complete 71% of his passes in a time when he aired it out more, he can surely do better in a conservative style. The justification for his salary has always been that he's elite. I guess "elite" has a different meaning now, if people still think he should make 30 million or more. But, that's just my two cents from the outside looking in. I would agree with you although most won’t. Nothing wrong with being a game manager, but I would like to see Brees with more deep threats. This is the first year that we really only have 1 deep threat in Ginn, and Brees seems to miss him an awful lot. I can’t think of any other year we had less than 2 deep threats to stretch the field.

01-01-2018, 12:54 PM	#13
saintfan Donated Plasma Join Date: Jul 2002 Location: San Francisco, CA Posts: 18,556 Blog Entries: 5	Re: Drew Brees regains NFL's record for completion percentage in a season Just imagine if Drew had a decent Tight End. Time and time again our WRs just aren't getting open, even when Thomas is double-teamed.

01-01-2018, 12:59 PM	#14
dizzle88 10000 POST CLUB Join Date: Oct 2009 Posts: 11,118	Re: Drew Brees regains NFL's record for completion percentage in a season Originally Posted by saintfan Just imagine if Drew had a decent Tight End. Time and time again our WRs just aren't getting open, even when Thomas is double-teamed. Why we let Ben Watson walk I'll never know. One of the dumbest decisions we've made, even at age 38 he's better than Josh Hill and Fleener combined. saintfan, Rugby Saint II and WhoDat!656 like this.

01-01-2018, 01:10 PM	#15
K Major Site Donor 2019 Join Date: Jan 2013 Location: Bedford, TX Posts: 24,589 Blog Entries: 3	Re: Drew Brees regains NFL's record for completion percentage in a season Side note - what happened to Willie Snead on 3rd downs ?? I saw him open a couple of times yesterday and Brees simply didn't throw in his direction. We will need Willie on Sunday. iceshack149 likes this.

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01-01-2018, 01:42 PM	#16
burningmetal 1000 Posts + Join Date: Mar 2012 Posts: 3,923 Blog Entries: 3	Re: Drew Brees regains NFL's record for completion percentage in a season Originally Posted by blackangold I would agree with you although most won’t. Nothing wrong with being a game manager, but I would like to see Brees with more deep threats. This is the first year that we really only have 1 deep threat in Ginn, and Brees seems to miss him an awful lot. I can’t think of any other year we had less than 2 deep threats to stretch the field. Yeah, and I'm not saying being a game manager is bad either. I can't speak much for what he's doing, having not watched him, but I've looked at box scores and seen a few highlights. It just seems like he's perhaps not able to push the ball down field as much. I know there aren't a lot of great receivers on the team, but that's kind of been the word throughout much of his time here, and people have always said Drew makes receivers better. I think he does make them better, when he's right, but there is something odd about his numbers this year. They've run the ball better, but there have been games when they haven't, and the passing game hasn't been there to rescue the team like it used to.
	If I had a nickel for every time I heard that, the NFL would fine and suspend me.

01-01-2018, 04:31 PM	#17
iceshack149 1000 Posts + Join Date: Mar 2003 Location: Fairbanks, AK Posts: 4,238 Blog Entries: 1	Re: Drew Brees regains NFL's record for completion percentage in a season I remember arguing for Aaron Brooks years ago and brought up the fact that he was completing over 60% of his passes. That was pretty darn good. This Brees cat is a freaking stud and doesn’t get near the credit he deserves for being one of the best QBs to ever play the game. saintfan, homerj07, SaintsBro and 1 others like this.

01-01-2018, 07:09 PM	#18
jeanpierre Site Donor 2018 Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: Thibodaux Posts: 43,543 Blog Entries: 39	Re: Drew Brees regains NFL's record for completion percentage in a season Originally Posted by burningmetal I haven't followed the team, for reasons most know, but I'm not surprised he has regained this record given how his stats would seem to indicate he became more of a game manager this year. If he could complete 71% of his passes in a time when he aired it out more, he can surely do better in a conservative style. The justification for his salary has always been that he's elite. I guess "elite" has a different meaning now, if people still think he should make 30 million or more. But, that's just my two cents from the outside looking in. What to do with Brees contract is the 800 lbs gorilla in the room for the offseason and should quickly be hotly debated...

01-01-2018, 07:40 PM	#19
Utah_Saint Site Donor 2019 Join Date: Jan 2012 Location: Salt Lake City, Utah Posts: 3,521	Re: Drew Brees regains NFL's record for completion percentage in a season You don't often hear the term "game manager" and 4000 yard season in the same sentence. And nobody's ever heard of 8+ yards per attempt at a game managing completion percentage 72%. Game managing GOAT. saintfan, Rugby Saint II, 44Champs and 1 others like this.

01-02-2018, 02:21 AM	#20
burningmetal 1000 Posts + Join Date: Mar 2012 Posts: 3,923 Blog Entries: 3	Re: Drew Brees regains NFL's record for completion percentage in a season Originally Posted by Utah_Saint You don't often hear the term "game manager" and 4000 yard season in the same sentence. And nobody's ever heard of 8+ yards per attempt at a game managing completion percentage 72%. Game managing GOAT. 4,000 doesn't mean a whole lot anymore. Who is considered the ultimate "game manager" in the NFL today? Alex Smith, right? Here are his stats this year: CMP ATT YDS CMP% AVG TD LNG INT FUM QBR RAT 341 505 4,042 67.5 8.00 26 79 5 1 63.4 104.7 Here are Brees' stats: CMP ATT YDS CMP% AVG TD LNG INT FUM QBR RAT 386 536 4,334 72.0 8.09 23 54 8 5 61.1 103.9 Does anyone consider Smith elite? From everything I know about this season, Brees has relied on his backs to make big plays out of check downs. High completion percentage does not indicate the opposite of a game manager, either. It's actually to be expected, because of the short passing game. I'm not suggesting this is a terrible thing, but I don't think Brees is playing at an elite level anymore. The guy who broke his previous record (Sam Bradford) is certainly not considered elite, and is at best a game manager. So what does that stat really mean in today's NFL? It's pretty hard to say anymore. The close comparison to Alex Smith's numbers this season would seem to back up my point. If you want to pay top dollar for that kind of production, good luck to you. This is how the league has gotten to this point where the Andy Dalton's of the world are getting paid like franchise players. Severe over-valuing. And no, I'm not suggesting Drew has dipped to Dalton's level. Just my observation. (for some annoying reason, no matter what I do, the numbers will not line up correctly with the stat columns when I post it, but hopefully you can read it well enough.)
	If I had a nickel for every time I heard that, the NFL would fine and suspend me.