Mike Sando of ESPN talked with 42 league insiders of the NFL, ranging from coaches, general managers, and offensive/defensive coordinators, and asked all of them to put each NFL quarterback into one of five tiers. Sando then averaged the ranking across all 42 opinions, and published them here (ESPN Insider required). Surprisingly, Saints QB Drew Brees was not in the top tier list of Quarterbacks, coming in the second tier, #5 overall.
Here are the definitions of the tiers:
Tier 1: Can carry his team each week. Team wins because of him.
Tier 2: Can carry team sometimes but not as consistently.
Tier 3: Legit starter but needs heavy run game/defense to win.
Tier 4: Might not want this guy starting all 16 games.
Tier 5: Do not think this guy should be starting.
By those definitions, it is shocking that Drew was not placed in the first tier, as he led the New Orleans Saints' historically bad defense to 7 wins last season. He makes any team around him better, and can lead a below-average team to wins the roster would have no right to have on paper.
Only Tom Brady, Aaron Rodgers, and Ben Roethlisberger were in the first tear, and Cam Newton was the only 2nd Tier QB ahead of Drew. While Drew ranks ahead of all of these QBs based on average score, Tier 2 also contains Matthew Stafford, Philip Rivers, Matt Ryan, Joe Flacco, Tony Romo, and Carson Palmer.
It is honestly shocking that NFL "insiders" consider Drew Brees (he of the Super Bowl MVP, record-breaking golden arm) to be in the same tier of QBs as Ryan, Rivers and Romo. Brady and Big Ben each have more than one Super Bowl victory to their name while Brees (like Rodgers) only has the one, but he still deserves to be mentioned in the same breath as Tom Brady before he would be grouped with Tony Romo.
So what says you, Who Dat Nation? Do you think Brees deserves to be in Tier 2 or Tier 1? Are you a crazy person who would put Drew even lower? Tell us in the comments. Send me presents.