The following article is not meant to de-fame any Quarterback in the National Football League, NOR is it to brag about our most recent WORLD CHAMPION SAINTS (!!!!). But what it is meant to do is give credit where credit is due.

After the Super Bowl, Drew was put into this "Elite QB" group of Tom Brady and Peyton Manning (which IMO all Saints fans knew he was already there). Right after the game, the first thing that reporters asked him was "Where does this put you in the elite status?" or "Are you the best QB in the league?". Andof course Drew is a humble champion would reply with such answers as "My teammates helped get me here..." andjust changing the subject kind of answers (which you can't blame the guy...who's going to say "yeah I am the best d*** QB in the league, and you can tell Peyton I said that" of course he wouldn't say that). What I'm here to do today is prove why Drew Brees is the BEST QB in the NFL and say what Drew wanted to say.

Before Peyton won a Super Bowl who were considered the ELITE QB's? Manning and Brady right? Yes...even though Manning hadn't yet won the big game he was still one of the few. Drew on the other hand was "not elite" yet not "good" he was in his own class. (I'm not sure if that part made sense to anyone but thats how it read out in my head) The chart below is one I've made that averages what I consider the top 4 QB's currently (Brees, Manning, Brady, and Rivers--I personally don't like River's but will give him his due respect) throughout the last 4 years (I let Brady slide on one year and put his last 4 FULL years):

As you can see Drew owns 4 of the 7 "stats" I've compiled. Manning owns 1 (which is somewhat of a bogus stat). Brady owns 1 which as you can see he CHEATED (sarcasm). And finally River's owns 1.

This past years MVP race, pretty much came down to Drew andPeyton. Peyton won with one of the big reasons being "his RB's weren't all that great" (32ndto be exact). OK I can somewhat understand that...he had to take his offense under his wing. Back to the 2008 season, Brees passes for 5,069 yards and becomes only the 2nd quarterback in history to pass for over 5,000 yards in a season. His teams rushing rank? 28thin the league. I can understand that last year we finished 8-8 so that really hurt Drew's stock, but then that was the ONLY reason he really didn't win the MVP, not even a smidgeof anyone saying "oh he didn't have a great rushing group behind him so we have to take that into consideration". Sorry...now I'm just complaining...I'll move on...

It's hard to believe but Tom Brady and his Patriots have not one a Super Bowl in 5 years (since 2005! I just graduated high school). So his SB's according to my chart are zero. Also his 128 TD's, many of those came during his 50 TD season a couple years ago so that bumped his total for that up a bit (if you average the other 3 years not including the 50 TD year, that gives him about 26 TD's a year...if he wouldn't have got Moss we could assume he'd probably meet that avg. and that would give him 104 TD's...giving him no top stats on the chart at all).

Philip Rivers, like I said I don't like (his attitude I guess). He doesn't throw INT's though, and he is and will be a great QB in the NFL. That's all I have to say about Rivers. (oh and without Rivers we wouldn't have DREW! so thats another good thing about Rivers I guess)

What I said here is what Drew really wanted to tell reporters (ok maybe IF he were to say it it wouldn't be like that...). We all know Drew is the best, and he has the stats, superbowls, leadership to prove it. Just because Manning gets behind the line and takes 20 seconds to call/setup a play doesn't make him a better QB than Drew. When all is said and done the New Orleans Saints are WORLD CHAMPIONS! and Drew Brees is the best Quarterback in the NFL.

via www.csmonitor.com

Everyone is all crazy about Ladanian Tomlinson, Brian Westbrook, and Thomas Jones hitting the market...but I say what about Willie Parker? Not only does he have a name that just sounds like he should be in New Orleans, but he could be our next Mike Bell (in that he runs hard for his size). I have always liked Parker, and think he could fill that slot in our 2.5 back system.  Currenlty he's a UFA, so we could sign him (if we don't get Bell back) What do ya'll think?

I'm going to attempt to do a CSC position-by-position draft analysis-type post for the Saints. Go ahead and hack away at it, but keep in mind: this is my first try at this, my opinion, and just for fun! Even if we do not need the position I am going to go ahead and put it in the article anyways(and find some excuse of why we would need it). Also to make things easier, and this post shorter, I'm only doing our 1st round slot and one prospect per position. Hope you enjoy!

QB:

Starting with the offense, (and a position we all know we really don't need at this time) I'm going to go over why we would need a rookie QB, and one that would be a good fit (IMO) for the Saints. Currently we still have Brunell and Chase Daniels as our backups. I don't think Brunell will be here next year and I think we picked up Daniels to be somewhat of a Brees-clone (not ideal height for a QB but a smart one). But if he doesn't work out, we're going to need someone for Brees to take under his wing. Drew has 9 years in the NFL now, and yes, i know Brett Favre has been in sooo many years, but that's Brett and he's a freak. So yeah, we really don't know how long Drew has in. I'm pretty sure we'll sign him to a huge deal soon, which he deserves, andprobably going to make him finish his career in NO. Here's a couple guys I like coming out of this years draft at QB (that would be around at least after the 1st round):

Dan LeFevour - QB Central Michigan

I really like this guy, he is a very mobile QB and his career stats are better than Tebow's:

12905 yds and 102 TD's compared to Tebow's 9285 yds and 88 TD's. I guess you could argue that Tebow did not start his first year, but that can also be a plus for LeFevour being that he did get the starting nod right away. Also you could argue that Tebow played in the SEC and won a the Heisman and blah blah, but he also had a great defense, O-line, WR's, and RB's. Look at the draftees coming out of Florida compared to Central Michigan in the past few years and there is a major difference...actually here's the difference:

CMU players currently in the NFL-

• Andrew Hartline - Offensive Tackle, Miami Dolphins
• Cullen Jenkins – Defensive End, Green Bay Packers
• Joe Staley – Offensive Tackle, San Francisco 49ers
• Tory Humphrey – Tight End, New Orleans Saints

 UF players currently in the NFL-

I'm actually not going to put this because I'm pretty sure you know who has more players in the NFL right now.

My point is that I like this young QB out of CMU over Tebow. Currently ESPN has him one spot below Tebow at the # 6 spot for QBs. So he should be available by the time our pick come around.

 RB:

The RB sopt doesn't worry me that much, but with the status of Mike Bell up in the air, andthe same could be said for Reggie Bush, I could see us going after a RB sometime in the draft, but here's who I like around that # 32 Spot:

Toby Gerhart - RB Stanford

This was one of my favorite guys to watch in college this year (or at least his highlights on SC being that I didn't get to see too many Stanford games) This guy isn't afraid to run over people, a nice power back that would be excellent in that goal-line/short yardage situation. I know he's probably going to be taken in a later round, but I would love if the Saints reached for him a bit. Possibly in the 2nd round or trade up a bit from another. Oh yeah...and he's white! Which if you haven't noticed is not too common in the NFL these days, and yes we'd probably label him as a fullback, but I can DREAM!? Can't I? Oh I also like Joe McKnight from USC (yeah a Reggie clone...but it would be like pressing the reset button w/ reggie and trying again!...at alot less than the 2nd pick in the draft!)

WR:

The WR is another position that really all we need now is depth/youth. We have Colston, Henderson, and Meachem as starters, with Moore possibly gone this year to FA. We've also got Roby and Arrington (which we haven't really seen either in a significant role on offense). Again I don't really see us taking a WR but if we were this is who I would love:

Mardy Gilyard - WR Cincinatti

A smaller, speedy WR with great hands would be a great fit here I think. I mentioned this guy a couple weeks ago in another comment, and really like the way he plays. Kind of reminds me of Josh Cribbsfrom Cleveland (if he put on another 20 lbs, which he probably would in the NFL) If you watched this great reciever at all, you know why I like him. In the 2010 senior bowl he had 5 catches for 103 yards and a TD (plus 79 return yards). And for his career total at UC he totaled 3,003 yards and 25 touchdowns.

TE:

Right now we've got Shockey, Billy Miller, and the Baconator. We could lose either MIller or Thomas this year so its possible we could try to get a solid TE in the draft. (I know we have more..but Dinkins? come on..)

Richard Dickson - TE LSU

Ol' Dick Dickson, I would love to have a good young TE. Jeremy Shockey has never played a full NFL season in his career for various reasons. I love Shockey, He plays his heart out when he's on the field, but sometimes you just can't trust the guy to be healthy. Dickson would be a great fit here as a pass catching TE. And the Saints have had a history of getting players from LSU.

OL:

I'm not going into every position on the OL, that would be too much work (while I'm at work). So I'll just go with what we might need. At the OT slot we could lose Jammal Brown, and Bushrod has been solid, yet questionable, so I could see us going in that direction in the Draft at some point:

Bruce Campbell - OT Maryland

Okmaybe it's not THAT Bruce Campbell, but the one I'm talking about is a beast, I really don't know if he'll fall that far in the first round, but if he does I could see the Saints picking him up.  If he's not available i wouldn't mind picking up another LSU guy with Ciron Black :

GAH! Wrong one again sorry...that's not even the same name, I feel so ashamed.

NOW ONTO DEFENSE!

LB:

With both Scott Shanle and Scott Fujita possibly gone soon I could see the Saints taking an LB with this pick. Alotof members of CSC have voiced their opinions and it's a toss-up on this one:

Navarro Bowman - LB Penn State

Sean Weatherspoon - LB Missouri

I've heard great things from both players and couldn't make a decision on this one. And if it came down to this for the draft, It would be a tough decision for the Saints. Both athletic and both tackle well, so honestly I really don't know.

DL:

I'm doing the same thing I did with the OL just to save time, I know the DL is alot different though so I'll just put 2 on the same section like I did in the previous LB section:

This is another position alot of CSC'ers agree that the team needs. With Charles Grant underperforming as usual, DE is the main focus. It would also be nice to get someone alongside Ellis on the DT/NT.

Everson Griffen- DE USC

Terrence Cody- DT Alabama

Starting with the DE, like I said above Grant has been on and off his whole career, it's like I want to like him but he's so inconsistent. He's had 2 good years (which his last good year was 04 (which was his best year with 10.5 sacks and 78 tackles). So I think it's time to move on, and even if we don't drop him, I'd like to have someone there for the future. Griffen is a great DE coming out of Southern Cal, he's probably one of the faster DE's in this years draft and surely quicker than our own Charles. I think he would make a great counter-part for Will Smith.

As for my Terrence Cody pick, I've commented about him before and got the "what about his weight" and "he's going to be like Andre Smith" lines, But give the guy a chance. Yeah he's from Alabama but that doesn't make him Andre Smith. This guy could have 100 times the work ethic as Smith (which still isn't saying much), and try to shed some pounds in the time between now and the start of the season. If he's wanting to make this his career he should know what to do, and that's to lose some of that extra baggage. The only trouble I really see is that he's more of a NT, and I'm not sure how that would fit with him and Ellis. I am sure both of them could play DT together though.

CB:

We're pretty good with CB's actually this year as long as we stay healthy. The Saints have a very young CB group and again, I'm not saying we really need it, just a what if we were to pick one:

Patrick Robinson - CB Florida State

Like I said I really doubt this, unless they're still serious about converting Malcolm Jenkins to safety (Usama Young too?) But Robinson would be a great pickup for any team needing a young CB.

SS/FS:

 This is a possibility, with Darren Sharper either leaving (which would suck) or retiring soon (which I doubt) and Roman Harper also being a FA, I could see the Saints picking up a safety this year.

Chad Jones - S LSU

Huge for a safety (6'3" 232), Jones' is a (an?)* LSU product and the tiger's version of Taylor Mays. He's more of a strong safety so he'd be better suited to take Harper's spot if he leaves. Not sure if he could make the move to FS (being that he's the size of most LB's. Taylor Mays is another one that I would have put here, but I would have thrown into the tiger's den with that.

Well that's all I got folks, I would have done kickers, but from this past Superbowl run, I can't even think of anyone I'd want rather than our awesome young kickers!

*GRAMMATICAL QUESTION* ok if you noticed my asterisk above, I was wondering...would you use an "a" or "an" in that situation. where the "L" in LSU is spoken it starts with an "e" as in "el", but normally before an "L" you would but "a" as in "a leprechaun". So what is it?? It was driving me nuts when I was typing it!

Is it too soon for draft talk? Well I don't care, i can't really party right now. (deployed in the middle east) so I have nothing better to do but post about the draft. BUT first...WHAT A F'n SUPERBOWL! I LOVED IT! my heart spiked when we kicked that onside kick, and resuscitated itself when Chris Reis came up with that ball. I was in the activity center watching the game with a couple colts fans near by, they left right after Tracy Porter's INT...I loved it, cherished the moment when the other team even knew "it was over". But yeah...man what an awesome moment in my life. Ok...on to the draft eh? So what do you think we'll do in the draft this year? We definitely are NOT used to having the dead last pick in the 1st round.  Currently we have 6 draft slots (1-4th and 6-7th round picks) which is 3 more than we had last year, so we have a whole lot more to work with.

Here's a a few of our past year's drafts: (* notable play time/impact)

That's 14 out of 25 draft picks over the past 4 drafts have made some sort of impact, and actually are still on the team. And that's not including 2 of our picks last year who were both on IR I think.  That alone shows how great our scouts are. So every pick in this draft can have a major impact on our team. What do you think we need this year? Who's not gonna be here next year also?  I don't know how much longer we'll have Charles Grant, so going with a young DE towards the end of the first round wouldn't be a bad idea.  What are some of your ideas for this year's draft strategy?

Ok...maybe not breaking news, I think this was posted on the website yesterday. But they have come in contact with "mojo...or..the unknown who dat...or whatever you want to call him"  Bill Harris is his name. They're saying on the website that they are going to give him all these tickets and hotels accomodations and airfare. THATS INSANE! I hope that one day when I get older I look like him so I can get free tickets. The link that follows is the website:

The Unknown Whodat!

I remember when I first saw this I couldn't stop laughing, I showed people in my office (who aren't saints fans) and they were cracking up.

Maybe I shouldn't ask the whole WHO DAT nation for your opinion on this...but I really can't decide on what I want to do.  I'm in quite a predicament, I can go to 1 of the last 2 games for the regular season this year and need to figure out which one to go to.:

Option A: Go to the last regular season game in the dome against tampa bay, and enjoy the victory and season with all my fellow saints fans (did we ever figure out the nickname thing?) I'm coming home for Christmas and it would be a great present. One giant problem with option A...the season ticket holders are trying to murder me with way above face value prices.

Option B: Go to the last game of the regular season here in Charlotte. Charlotte is about 2 hrs away from here and the tickets for that game are a lot cheaper (for the price I can get 2 nosebleeds in the dome I can pay the same amount for lower level sideline tickets.) But the problem with this is that not as many saints fans will be there to celebrate with me.

Welp, thats about all I have really.  I wish I could go to the monday night game against the cowgirls but my leave does't start til the 22nd. So just give me your opinion on what you would do in this situation.

I saw yesterday that Mike "The Predator" McKenzie was signed again.  I've always wondered how players feel after getting cut by a team...like I know that NFL players are supposed to be professional and all, but do you think they hold anything against the team?  Hopefully he'll stay healthy this time around and be a little more consistent. What are yall's opinions on McKenzie's return? Do you think he'll be a valuable addition to our team?

Just thinking about all the uniform changes that have happened over the years in the NFL, and for the most part the Saints' uniform has pretty much always been the same.  And I'm not at all saying I don't like it, I love our colors and the simplicity of it, but I wanna see what ya'll think. If you could would you change it? What would you change? Style? Numbers? Logo? Colors? Would you like to see more throwback options?

Me personally, I like the uniforms the way they are. I'd wanna see what they could do with it, maybe making some different stripe pattern, but you have to love that old gold and black that we've always loved.  One thing that made me think of this topic was I've noticed alot when teams change there jerseys, HISTORICALLY they somehow do better. Examples: 2006 Seahawks, Broncos when they won the SB back in the 90's, the Buccaneers sucked til they changed to those darker uniforms.

Comment!!!

Tell the world what you think...they are talking about having a 3 running back system with PT, Reggie, and Mike Bell. personally I think we should give Pierre a shot at a full season starting. He's going to be a great back, and use Reggie the way we used him his rookie year. Just trying to see what everyone out there thinks about this new strategy Sean Payton is wanting to implement. Comment too!