Drew Brees Drew Christopher Brees ( ; born January 15 , 1979 ) is an American football quarterback for the New Orleans Saints of the National Football League ( NFL ) . He played college football for Purdue University , and was chosen by the San Diego Chargers in the second round of the 2001 NFL Draft . Brees is a seven - time Pro Bowl selection , holds multiple NFL passing records , and led the Saints to a Super Bowl championship . Brees has been selected to the Pro Bowl seven times in his career – with the Chargers in 2004 and the Saints in 2006 , 2008 , 2009 , 2010 , 2011 and 2012 . He was the NFL ' s Comeback Player of the Year in 2004 , the National Football League Offensive Player of the Year in 2008 & 2011 , and the MVP of Super Bowl XLIV . During his Super Bowl victory in 2009 , Brees tied a record for most completions in a Super Bowl with 32 ( Super Bowl XLIV ; tied with Tom Brady ) . Brees is the only quarterback in NFL history to reach 400 + yards passing in consecutive playoff games , which he has done in three straight postseason games ( 2010 vs . Seattle ; 2011 vs . Detroit ; 2011 vs . San Francisco ) . " Sports Illustrated " named him as its 2010 Sportsman of the Year . Brees holds the NFL single - season record for most passing yards in a season by a quarterback , with 5 , 476 yards , which he accomplished during the 2011 season . That year Brees also set NFL records for highest completion percentage in a season – 71 . 2 % , most 300 + yard passing games in a season – 13 , and most completions in a season – 468 . Brees has the 2nd highest career completion percentage among all quarterbacks in NFL history with at least 2 , 500 + attempts – 65 . 6 % . He also has the highest career post - season completion percentage – 66 . 8 % . Brees holds the record for most consecutive games with at least 1 touchdown pass ( 54 ) , surpassing Johnny Unitas ' s record of 47 on October 7 , 2012 . According to NFL Network ' s " Top 10 Records Never to be Broken , " Unitas ' 47 consecutive games with a touchdown pass was listed at number two . Brees is the fastest player in NFL history to reach 40 , 000 yards passing . He is also the all - time NFL leader in career passing yards per game , and he is the only player in NFL history with multiple 5 , 000 yard passing seasons . Brees also became the Saints ' all - time leader in career wins , pass attempts , pass completions , passing yards , and passing touchdowns . Early life and high school . Brees was born in Austin , Texas , the son of Mina ( née Akins ) , an attorney , and Eugene Wilson ( " Chip " ) Brees II , a prominent trial lawyer . He was named after Dallas Cowboys wide receiver Drew Pearson . His uncle , Marty Akins , was an All - American starting quarterback for the Texas Longhorns college football team from 1975 to 1977 . Chip Brees played basketball for the Texas A & M Aggies men ' s basketball team , and his grandfather , Ray Akins , had the third - most victories as a Texas high school football coach . Brees was selected as Texas High School 5A Most Valuable Offensive Player in 1996 and led the Westlake High School football team to 16 - 0 record and state championship . As a high school football player , Brees completed 314 of 490 passes ( 64 . 1 percent ) for 5 , 461 yards with 50 touchdowns including , in his senior season , 211 of 333 passes ( 63 . 4 percent ) for 3 , 528 yards with 31 touchdowns . Westlake went 28 - 0 - 1 when Brees started for two seasons and beat Abilene Cooper High School 55 - 15 in the 1996 title game . College career . Brees graduated from Purdue University with a degree in industrial management , and played for the Purdue Boilermakers football team . He is a member of the Sigma Chi Fraternity . He left Purdue with Big Ten Conference records in passing yards ( 11 , 792 ) , touchdown passes ( 90 ) , total offensive yards ( 12 , 693 ) , completions ( 1 , 026 ) , and attempts ( 1 , 678 ) . He led the Boilermakers to the 2001 Rose Bowl , Purdue ' s first appearance there since 1967 , where Purdue lost by ten points to the Washington Huskies . Brees was a finalist for the Davey O ' Brien Award as the nation ' s best quarterback in 1999 . He won the Maxwell Award as the nation ' s outstanding player of 2000 and won the NCAA ' s Today ' s Top VIII Award as a member of the Class of 2001 . Brees was also fourth in Heisman Trophy voting in 1999 and third in 2000 . Brees also tied an NCAA record with the longest pass ever ( 99 yards ) , to receiver Vinny Sutherland against Northwestern on September 25 , 1999 As a senior , Brees was named the Academic All - America Player of the Year , the first Purdue player since Bruce Brineman ( 1989 ) to earn national academic honors . Brees also was awarded Purdue ' s Leonard Wilson Award for unselfishness and dedication . To continue his education and improve his ability to pursue reasoned business ventures and opportunities , Brees also attended the Stanford Graduate School of Business for NFL Business Management and Entrepreneurship in 2008 . Professional career . San Diego Chargers ( 2001 - 2005 ) . 2001 NFL Draft . Brees ' college success led to projections that he would be a mid - to - late first round draft pick in the 2001 NFL Draft , but he slipped due to concerns about his relatively short stature for a professional quarterback ( 6 ' 0 " ) , a perceived lack of arm strength , and a sense that he had succeeded in college in a spread offense . Ultimately , Brees was the second quarterback selected in the 2001 draft , chosen by the San Diego Chargers as the first pick of the second round . San Diego originally had the first pick in that draft , but traded it to Atlanta ( which used it to draft Michael Vick ) in return for the fifth pick of the first round , with which San Diego drafted LaDainian Tomlinson . Early career . Brees played in his first professional game on November 4 , 2001 against the Kansas City Chiefs . He won the starting job over Doug Flutie during training camp before the start of the 2002 season . Brees started all 16 games for the Chargers during the 2002 season , leading the team to an 8 - 8 record . After a disappointing start to the 2003 season he was replaced by Flutie . Brees ' career with the Chargers was in jeopardy after San Diego acquired NC State ' s Philip Rivers . After the trade , it was almost certain Brees ' days as the Chargers ' starting QB were over . However , Rivers held out nearly all of training camp , and Brees remained the starter throughout the 2004 season , where he started 15 games and led the team to a 12 - 4 regular season record . Brees posted spectacular numbers , completing 65 . 5 % of his passes for 3 , 159 yards , with 27 touchdowns to only 7 interceptions , giving him a 104 . 8 passer rating . The Chargers won the AFC West and Brees was selected to the 2004 NFL Pro Bowl . He was named 2004 NFL Comeback Player of the Year . 2005 . Brees became a free agent after the season and was not expected to return to San Diego , which had already committed a large sum of money to Rivers . The team eventually designated Brees a franchise player , giving him a one - year contract that quadrupled his pay to $ 8 million for 2005 . Under the terms of the franchise player contract , Brees was eligible to be traded or sign with another team , but the Chargers would receive two future first round draft choices in return . He was not traded and continued as starting quarterback for the remainder of the 2005 season . Brees continued his productive play in 2005 , as he posted a career high in passing yards with 3 , 576 . Brees also posted an 89 . 2 rating , 10th best in the NFL . However , in the last game of the 2005 season against the Denver Broncos , Brees tore his labrum while trying to pick up his own fumble after being hit by Broncos safety John Lynch . Denver tackle Gerard Warren hit Brees while he was on the ground , causing the injury . Brees underwent arthroscopic surgery , performed by Dr . James Andrews , to repair the torn labrum in his right ( throwing ) shoulder on January 5 , 2006 . Subsequent reports mentioned additional rotator cuff damage and he also was treated by Dr . Saby Szajowitz to recover and regain muscle movement . He was selected as first alternate to the AFC Pro Bowl team for the 2005 season . He would have played in his second consecutive Pro Bowl due to the injury to starter Carson Palmer , but his own injury dictated that the AFC Pro Bowl roster would have to be filled by second alternate Jake Plummer . After the season , the Chargers offered Brees a 5 - year , $ 50 million contract that paid $ 2 million in base salary the first year and the rest heavily based on performance incentives . Brees evaluated the incentive - based offer as a sign of no confidence by the Chargers and promptly demanded the salary a top 5 " franchise " quarterback would receive . New Orleans Saints ( 2006 - present ) . After the Chargers refused to increase their offer , Brees met with other teams . The New Orleans Saints and the Miami Dolphins were interested . New Orleans made an offer that included $ 10 million in guaranteed money the first year and a $ 12 million option the second year . Miami was unsure if Brees ' shoulder was completely healed and doctors suggested the team not sign him because of the injury . The Dolphins ended negotiations and traded for Minnesota Vikings QB Daunte Culpepper instead . Brees signed a 6 - year , $ 60 million deal with the Saints on March 14 , 2006 . 2006 . Brees had a productive first year with the Saints . The team , under first - year head coach Sean Payton , rebounded from its disastrous 2005 season ( when the team was unable to play in New Orleans due to the damage caused by Hurricane Katrina and struggled to a 3 – 13 record ) to finish with a 10 – 6 regular season record and won the NFC South division title . Brees threw a league - leading 4 , 418 passing yards , finished third in the league with 26 touchdown passes and 11 interceptions and a 96 . 2 passer rating . Brees was named starting quarterback for the NFC in the 2007 Pro Bowl . On January 5 , 2007 , Brees was named first runner - up behind former teammate Tomlinson for league MVP by the Associated Press . Brees and Tomlinson were co - recipients of the Walter Payton Man of the Year Award . On January 13 , 2007 , in his first playoff game for New Orleans , Brees was 20 – 32 in passing attempts with 1 touchdown and no interceptions against the Philadelphia Eagles in the Louisiana Superdome . The Saints held on to win 27 – 24 , and advanced to the franchise ' s first NFC Championship Game against the Chicago Bears . Though he completed 27 of 49 passes for 354 yards against the Chicago Bears , and two touchdowns , Brees committed three costly turnovers , and was penalized for an intentional grounding in the endzone , resulting in a safety , as the Saints lost 39 – 14 . Brees then dislocated his left elbow during the first quarter of the Pro Bowl . 2007 . The following season Brees passed for 4 , 423 yards and tied a then team record with 28 touchdowns . He also set the NFL record previously held by Rich Gannon for pass completions in a single season with 440 . However , the Saints missed the playoffs . 2008 . In 2008 , the Saints again missed the playoffs but Brees had a strong year statistically , finishing 15 yards short of the NFL record for passing yards thrown in a single season set by Dan Marino in 1984 . He finished the season with 5 , 069 yards and became the second quarterback in NFL history to throw for over 5 , 000 yards in a season . He passed for 300 yards ten times during the season , tying Rich Gannon ' s 2002 record . He was named FedEx Air Player of the Week for his performances during weeks 8 and 12 and was named the AP 2008 Offensive Player of the Year . 2009 Super Bowl Season . In the first game of the 2009 season against the Detroit Lions , Brees set a career - high and franchise - tying record with six touchdown passes , ( NFL record for opening week ) going 26 / 34 for 358 yards . The next week , Brees led the Saints to a 48 – 22 win over the Philadelphia Eagles , throwing for 311 yards and three touchdown passes . Brees also tied the record for most touchdown passes by the end of week 2 with 9 . In week 6 against the 5 – 0 New York Giants , Brees completed 23 of 30 passes for 369 yards , 4 touchdown passes and a passer rating of 156 . 8 in a dominant 48 – 27 victory . In week 7 , Brees led a dramatic comeback victory on the road against the Miami Dolphins , 46 – 34 . The Saints quickly faced a 24 – 3 deficit in the second quarter , trailing for the first time all season at that point , and failing to score on their first possession as they had in all of their previous contests . Brees had a poor outing , but provided two crucial rushing touchdowns , one just before halftime to narrow the deficit to 24 – 10 , and one in the third quarter to give the Saints their first lead of the game , 37 – 34 . The next week , Brees threw for 308 yards on 25 of 33 passing along with two touchdowns and one interception in leading the Saints to a 35 – 27 victory and franchise tying best start at 7 – 0 against the rival Atlanta Falcons . In week 9 , Brees helped guide the team to a 30 – 20 victory over the Carolina Panthers . This would be Drew ' s first victory over the Carolina Panthers in the Superdome and gave the Saints their best ever start in franchise history at 8 – 0 . In week 12 , Brees led the Saints to an 11 – 0 record , defeating the New England Patriots 38 – 17 on " Monday Night Football " . Drew Brees totaled 371 yards passing , posting a perfect passer rating of 158 . 3 , and is the only person to throw for five touchdowns against a team coached by Bill Belichick . After close victories over the Washington Redskins and Falcons in successive weeks to start 13 – 0 , Brees and the Saints lost their first game of the season to the Dallas Cowboys , 24 – 17 , after DeMarcus Ware caused a Brees fumble in the final seconds , ending a fourth quarter rally . The Saints then lost their last two games , with Brees sitting out the week 17 finale against Carolina . Their 13 – 3 record secured the # 1 seed in the NFC . Brees ' individual statistics led to numerous accolades , including a Pro Bowl selection , the Maxwell Football Club ' s Bert Bell Award , and runner - up in voting for the AP MVP , Offensive Player of the Year , and All - Pro awards . He finished the season with a completion percentage of 70 . 62 , establishing a new NFL record . In the divisional round of the playoffs , the Saints routed the Arizona Cardinals 45 – 14 to advance to the NFC Championship , where they defeated the Minnesota Vikings 31 – 28 in overtime . Brees completed 17 of 31 passes for 197 yards and 3 touchdowns . The underdog Saints defeated the Indianapolis Colts 31 – 17 in Super Bowl XLIV on February 7 , 2010 . Brees tied a Super Bowl record with 32 pass completions and won the Super Bowl Most Valuable Player Award . He threw for 288 yards and 2 touchdowns . It was the first league championship in Saints franchise history . Brees was named the 2010 Sports Illustrated Sportsman of the Year , both for his winning the Super Bowl and his charitable work towards the reconstruction of New Orleans . On December 17 , 2010 , he was named AP Male Athlete of the Year . 2010 . In 2010 , the Saints qualified for the playoffs as a wild card team with an 11 - 5 record , but were eliminated in the Wild Card round by the Seattle Seahawks ( with the Seahawks being the first team in NFL history to qualify for the playoffs with a losing record in a non - strike season ) , 41 - 36 . Despite the disappointing end to the season , Brees was selected to his fifth Pro Bowl ( fourth as a Saint ) and was voted the No . 9 NFL player of 2011 by his peers . 2011 . In 2011 , Drew Brees broke Dan Marino ' s 27 year - old record for most passing yards in one season ( 5 , 084 ) in the 15th game of the season ( week 16 ) against the Atlanta Falcons at home in New Orleans at the Mercedes - Benz Superdome with a TD pass to Darren Sproles . Brees also set a new Saints franchise record for passing touchdowns in a season with 46 . Drew Brees began the 2011 season against the Super Bowl champs , Green Bay Packers , in a close loss , 42 - 34 . Despite the loss , Brees posted his 7th career 400 - plus passing game , with 419 yards , also throwing for 3 Touchdowns and zero interceptions , for a 112 . 5 passer rating . In week 2 , Drew Brees defeated the Chicago Bears during the Saints ' s home - opener for the first time in his career as a starting quarterback , with 270 yards , 3 touchdowns and zero interceptions . With his first win over the Bears , Brees has defeated all NFL teams except the Baltimore Ravens . With the 79 yard TD pass to Devery Henderson in the 2nd quarter , Brees extended his streak of games with at least one passing TD to 29 , which is 1 game behind Dan Marino and 7 behind Brett Favre , who both have 30 and 36 games with at least one TD pass thrown respectively . Johnny Unitas has the all time record with 47 straight games with a TD pass , but Brees streak is the fourth - longest in the NFL since 1950 . Brees has not been held without a TD pass since Week 4 of the 2009 season , a 24 - 10 home win over the New York Jets . He has thrown 62 TD passes during the streak , which does not include four playoff games in which he also threw at least one TD pass . In week 3 against the Houston Texans , Brees threw 3 touchdown passes to extend his streak to 30 games with at least one passing TD , tying Dan Marino . He also completed 70 . 5 percent of his passes for 370 yards , completing 31 of his 44 passes in a 40 - 33 home win . In week 7 against the Indianapolis Colts , Brees threw 5 touchdown passes to extend his streak to 34 games with at least one passing TD . He completed 31 of his 35 passes for 325 yards and beat the Colts 62 - 7 . In week 12 ’ s Monday night hosting of the NY Giants , the Saints routed the Giants 49 - 24 aided by Brees ' stellar performance with passing for 363 yards and 4 TDs passes extending his streak to 38 games . In a home game on 12 / 4 / 2011 against the Detroit Lions , Brees passed for 342 yards . Brees ' performance gave him 4 , 031 yards on the season , making him the first quarterback in NFL history to eclipse the 4 , 000 - yard mark in the first 12 games of a season , and the first quarterback to reach 4 consecutive seasons with 4000 + yards and 30 + TD passes . In week 15 against the Minnesota Vikings , Brees threw for 412 yards with 5 passing TDs . Brees became the first quarterback in NFL history to throw for 5 touchdowns , 400 + yards , and a completion percentage of 80 % in a game . He extended his streak of a passing touchdown to 41 consecutive games . In week 16 against the Atlanta Falcons , on 12 / 26 / 2011 at 10 : 35 pm New Orleans time at the Mercedes - Benz Superdome in New Orleans , Brees broke Dan Marino ' s long standing record of passing yards in a year of 5 , 084 with a 9 - yard touchdown pass to Darren Sproles with just under 3 minutes left in the fourth quarter of the game . Brees needed 305 yards to break the record entering the game and exceeded that mark with 307 . He ended the game having thrown for 5 , 087 total passing yards for the regular season with 1 regular season game remaining . With his second - quarter , 8 - yard touchdown pass to Marques Colston , Brees extended his streak of consecutive games with a touchdown pass to 42 games . Marino congratulated Brees via Twitter after the game , saying " Congrats to @ drewbrees . Great job by such a special player . " Brees responded by tweeting , " Thanks to @ DanMarino for his class and support during this run . It is an honor to attempt to follow the example he set for us all . " In week 17 against the Carolina Panthers , Brees closed out the season by setting 6 NFL records , finishing the year with 468 completions for 5 , 476 yards , edging Tom Brady of the New England Patriots who also surpassed Marino ' s record with 5 , 235 yards . Brees averaged 342 yards passing per game , which broke Dan Fouts ' record of 320 in a strike - shortened season . 2012 . On July 13 , the Saints and Brees agreed to a 5 year , $ 100 million contract . The contract has the largest amount of guaranteed money in NFL history ( $ 60 million ) . $ 40 million of the contract will be paid the first year . In a Week 1 loss to the Redskins 40 - 32 , Brees extended his streak of consecutive games with a touchdown pass to 44 games with a first quarter pass to Jimmy Graham . Brees threw for 339 yards , 3 touchdowns , and 2 interceptions . He had a passer rating of 70 . 9 and a 46 . 2 completion percentage ( compared to his 71 . 2 % from the 2011 season ) . In Week 2 Brees threw another touchdown pass to Graham , extending his consecutive games streak to within 2 of Johnny Unitas ' record 47 . But the Saints lost again , 35 - 27 , to the Panthers . Week 3 saw Brees throw a touchdown pass to Lance Moore in the 1st period to move to within 1 of Unitas ' record . However , the Saints lost , 27 - 24 , to the Chiefs in OT despite Brees throwing for 3 TDs , 240 yds . , and 1 INT . Week 4 saw Brees throw a 20 - yd TD pass to Marques Colston against the Packers . This was his 47th consecutive game with at least 1 TD pass . With that TD pass , Brees tied Johnny Unitas ' consecutive game streak with at least 1 TD pass which has stood unbroken for more than 52 years . Nonetheless , the Saints remained winless , 28 - 27 . Week 5 saw Brees throw a 40 - yd TD pass to Devery Henderson against the Chargers . This was his 48th consecutive game with a TD pass . With that TD pass , Brees broke Johnny Unitas ' consecutive game streak with at least 1 TD pass which had stood unbroken for more than 52 years . Sean Payton , Joe Vitt and Mickey Loomis were granted permission to watch the week 5 game against the San Diego Chargers due to Brees potentially breaking Unitas ' record . In the week 13 game against the Atlanta Falcons , Brees threw 0 TDs and a career high 5 INTs , ending his consecutive game streak with at least 1 touchdown pass at 54 . Week 14 saw Brees start a new streak of TD passes when he threw one to Darren Sproles in the 3rd period against the Giants . He threw for 354 yards , giving him his 7th straight 4 , 000 - yard passing season , surpassing Peyton Manning ' s 6 and 5th straight season with at least 30 TD passes & 4 , 000 yards passing , both NFL records . Brees was selected to the 2013 Pro Bowl as an injury replacement , replacing Robert Griffin III who suffered an injury . Personal life . Brees married his college sweetheart , Brittany Dudchenko , in February 2003 . They met and dated while attending Purdue University . He and his wife purchased and renovated a home in Uptown New Orleans . Their first child , a son named Baylen Robert Brees , was born on January 15 , 2009 , Brees ' 30th birthday . Their second son , Bowen Christopher Brees , was born on October 19 , 2010 . Brees solicited the help of his Twitter followers in naming his second son . A third son , Callen Christian Brees , was born on August 15 , 2012 . Brees maintains his offseason home in San Diego . On July 6 , 2010 , Brees released his first book , entitled " Coming Back Stronger : Unleashing the Hidden Power of Adversity " , co - authored by Chris Fabry and published by Tyndale House . " Coming Back Stronger " opened at number 3 on the non - fiction bestseller list of " The New York Times " . Brees ' mother , Mina Brees , died on August 7 , 2009 , aged 59 . The death was ruled a suicide . Brees was briefly excused from training camp for a " family matter " . In 2006 , Brees had described their relationship as " nonexistent " ever since he refused to hire her as his agent when he entered the NFL . After her death , Brees stated that this quote was three years old and that his relationship with his mother had been improving . In April 2010 , Brees was voted by fans as the cover athlete of EA Sports Madden NFL 11 video game . On March 30 , 2010 , Brees became the national spokesperson for AdvoCare International , a multi - level marketing company producing weight management , nutritional supplements , and personal care products . In October 2010 , Brees appeared in an It Gets Better video , where he gave an anti - bullying message in the wake of a series of suicides committed by gay teenagers . Brees wears # 9 on his uniform in honor of one of his idols , baseball legend Ted Williams . Charity and volunteer activities . Drew Brees is active in a number of charitable activities . In New Orleans , he has become ( in the words of a 2010 " Sports Illustrated " profile ) " an athlete as adored and appreciated as any in an American city today " . When " Sports Illustrated " selected him for the 2010 Sportsman of the Year award , it said the award was " [ f ] or not only leading the New Orleans Saints to the first Super Bowl title in the franchise ' s history , but also for helping lead the city of New Orleans ' rebirth after the tragedy of Hurricane Katrina " . Brees has been involved in Hurricane Katrina recovery . Drew and Brittany ’ s Brees Dream Foundation announced a partnership in 2007 with international children ’ s charity Operation Kids , to rebuild and restore and recreate academic and athletic facilities , parks and playgrounds , after - school programs , mentoring programs for the intellectually disabled , neighborhood revitalization projects and child care facilities in New Orleans . In addition Drew sponsors the Rebuilding thru Brotherhood program to invite fellow Sigma Chi members to the New Orleans community to build homes with the Habitat for Humanity . Brees has acquired the nickname " Breesus " among Saints fans . Brees visited the Guantanamo Bay detention camp on a USO tour in late June 2009 . Following his return , Brees was quoted as stating that Guantanamo captives were being treated ten times better than convicts in U . S . prisons . In February 2008 , Brees signed a promotional deal with Chili ' s Grill & Bar to promote the chain ' s new line of hamburgers . The promotion helped raise money for charity . In June 2008 , Brees participated in the Pro Sports Team Challenge , a competition for pro athletes to help raise money for charities . The charity Brees played for was Operation Kids . On February 18 , 2007 , Brees was honored by the Krewe of Bacchus , a New Orleans Mardi Gras parade organization , as the 2007 Grand Marshall of the Bacchus parade . Brees presided as Bacchus XLII for the 2010 parade on February 14 , 2010 , one week after the Super Bowl during Mardi Gras season . In June 2010 , President Obama appointed Brees to be co - chair of the newly renamed President ' s Council on Fitness , Sports and Nutrition , along with former Olympic gymnast Dominique Dawes .