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New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees made some more history during a Monday night win over the Indianapolis Colts. Brees entered the game two touchdowns shy of Peyton Manning's all-time touchdown record of 539. Midway through the third quarter, Brees would connect with Josh Hill for his third touchdown of the night and No. 540 for his career.
It was a blowout win for the Saints led by Brees who completed 29 of 30 pass attempts. His 96.7% completion rate was the highest for a quarterback with a minimum of 20 attempts in a single game. Brees broke the all-time record for passing yards last season against the Washington Redskins, also a Monday night game at home. With the records piling up, it is appropriate to wonder where Brees ranks among the top quarterbacks of all-time.
Let's start with the obvious and say that Brees is far and away the best Saint quarterback of all-time. He has done incredible things for the city of New Orleans and the franchise as a whole. Now that that's out of the way, where does Brees rank all-time?
Is Brees a Top-Five QB of All-Time?
It is hard to go against Tom Brady and Joe Montana as the two best quarterbacks to ever take a snap. Brady is part of a dynasty that we will never see again in any sport. The Patriots have won six Super Bowls with Brady and head coach Bill Belichick. Montana is highly regarded as the best Super Bowl performer ever. He has a record of 4-0 in Super Bowls and holds records for the highest passer rating (127.8) and most pass attempts without an interception (122). Montana was also the first quarterback to win the Super Bowl MVP award three times.
From there, Manning is a safe pick for the No. 3 spot on the list. Manning held the passing touchdowns and yards record until Brees overtook him. He added a second Super Bowl ring in his final season to go along with five MVP awards. Manning is considered the best regular-season quarterback ever as he was a Pro Bowl player 14 times and named a First-Team All-Pro member seven times.
After the top three, the list gets a little tricky. Dan Marino was one of the best passers ever but he was never able to capture a Super Bowl victory. Marino played in a different era and tore it up when throwing the football was much more difficult than it is today. It is unfair to criticize players based on their era because nothing is guaranteed. We do not know for sure how Brady or Brees would have fared in the 1980s. Johnny Unitas and Bart Starr were ahead of their time, which earns them great respect. Then there is John Elway who was one of the best prospects coming out of college ever and backed it up with two championships.
When rounding out the top five, Brees has to be in there. After Brady, Montana, and Manning, there is no wrong answer. Elway could be put at No. 4 but it is hard to put Marino above Brees without a championship. Let's not forget that Brees is still playing and has a chance to add another Super Bowl at some point. Because of all this, Brees will go down as a top-five quarterback of all-time.
