Drew Brees Can’t Avoid This 1 Frustrating Statistic
By all accounts, Drew Brees is one of the NFL’s best quarterbacks and has been for over a decade. He’s not just a great player; he’s the face of a franchise and a Super Bowl winner. But one accolade has evaded Brees during his illustrious career.
It’s an unfortunate statistic Brees just can’t seem to avoid. Let’s take a closer look at exactly what this is and whether Brees can break the streak.
Drew Brees’ 2019 season so far
Due to a thumb injury, Brees has only played seven games this season, but he’s been fantastic in those seven matchups. Here’s what he’s accomplished so far this season:
- Win-loss record of 5-2
- Completed 73% of his passes
- 12 touchdowns
- Four interceptions
- 1,791 passing yards
- A quarterback rating of 104.4
These numbers are impressive enough, but even more remarkable when one considers that Brees had surgery this season (on his thumb). Depending on how the playoff picture shapes up in the season’s final month, the Saints QB has his team favorably positioned in the NFC.
Drew Brees can’t avoid this one frustrating statistic
Despite winning a Super Bowl, leading the league in touchdowns four times, and throwing for over 4,000 yards 12 times and 5,000 yards four times, Brees has yet to win a league MVP. He’s come close, however, finishing in second place four times:
2006
Brees technically finished second in 2006, but it was as an afterthought. He received only four votes as his former Chargers teammate LaDainian Tomlinson ran away with the MVP award. That year, Tomlinson broke Shaun Alexander’s rushing record for touchdowns with 31.
2009
Once again, Brees finished in second by a wide margin, losing out to then-Colts quarterback Peyton Manning by a landslide vote of 39.5 to 7.5 votes. Brees got the last laugh, however, as he defeated Manning in the Super Bowl that season.
2011
You’d be hardpressed to ever call Aaron Rodgers winning MVP a head-scratcher, but 2011 voting featured a surprising situation.
Rodgers defeated Brees for the award, which wasn’t incredibly surprising as Rodgers had a fantastic season. What shocked fans was the margin of Rodgers’ win — 48 votes to Brees’ two. Notably, Brees had more passing yards and touchdowns than the Packers’ QB.
2018
This time, Brees again finished in second by a wide margin. Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes won the award, defeating the elder QB by a count of 41 to nine votes. It’s hard to argue with Mahomes as MVP based on his incredible season.
Will Drew Brees win the 2019 MVP Award?
The amount of times Brees has finished in second place demonstrates that at least some voters believe he deserves the MVP award. But he has one major strike against him.
In 2019, the amount of games he missed makes it highly unlikely he’ll win the award. Brees sat out five matchups, which constitutes nearly a third of the NFL season. MVP voters will probably not give him the award no matter how well he or the Saints play from here on out.
As far as Brees’ MVP chances for the rest of his career, they’re not looking great. It’s not that he isn’t capable or deserving of an MVP. But the fact remains that he hasn’t won one yet and he’s over 40 years old. The odds of him playing better than some of his other MVP-caliber years are slim.
