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 was also fourth in Heisman Trophy voting in 1999 and third in 2000.

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.

Brees also posted an 89. 2 rating, 10th best in the NFL.

Brees also tied the record for most touchdown passes by the end of week 2 with 9.

Brees also set a new Saints franchise record for passing touchdowns in a season with 46.

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 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.

Miami Dolphins quarterback Chad Pennington, who suffered two tears to his rotator cuff and has undergone as many surgeries to repair it, is often compared to Cook because their injuries are so similar ; his injury was also similar to that suffered by New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees, who had surgery on his rotator cuff after the 2005-06 season and finished the following season as an All-Pro quarterback.

His 36 completions set a playoff record that would stand until broken by Drew Brees ' 39 completions in 2010 ( Brees ' New Orleans Saints also lost that game ).

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 currently tied all-time with consecutive games with at least 1 TD pass – 47 ( 2009 – present ), with Johnny Unitas, who threw a touchdown pass in 47 consecutive games ( between 1956 – 1960 ), a record which has remained unsurpassed for 52 years.

The following season Brees passed for 4423 yards and tied a then team record with 28 touchdowns.

Brees tied a Super Bowl record with 32 pass completions and won the Super Bowl Most Valuable Player Award.

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.

Orton tied former Purdue quarterback Drew Brees ' record for number of passing yards in a game ( 522 vs. Indiana Hoosiers ), and is the only Purdue quarterback to start four consecutive bowl games ( Brees and Mark Herrmann started three straight ).

On their ensuing drive, the Chargers mounter a scoring threat by moving the ball to the Jets 37-yard line, but Reggie Tongue intercepted a pass from Brees and the score remained tied at halftime.

During the 1985 season, Everett led the NCAA in total offense ( 3, 589 yards ), which at the time was a school record ( since broken by Drew Brees ).

Manning's Colts defeated the Chargers in 1998 and 1999, but in 2004 with Leaf long gone from the game the revamped Chargers behind Drew Brees erupted into playoff contention ; on December 26 with both teams at 11-3 the Colts hosted the Chargers with Manning close to matching Dan Marino's touchdown record ; the Chargers stormed to a 31-16 lead, but Dominic Rhodes ' kickoff return put the Colts within eight points, then with one minute remaining Manning rifled a 21-yard touchdown to Brandon Stokley, breaking Marino's record ; the two-point try succeeded, then after Brees was intercepted the game went to overtime and the Colts won 34-31 on a field goal.

Drew Brees ended the 2008 season just 16 yards short of beating Dan Marino's single-season record of 5084 total passing yards.

To cap off the season, quarterback Drew Brees broke the single season passing record held for over 25 years, on the way to a Saints division winning game.

He threw for 3, 969 yards, a then-franchise record 35 touchdown passes with only 10 interceptions, completed an 70. 28 percent of his passes — the highest completion percentage of the 1990s, third all-time, and at the time, the best completion percentage by any quarterback with more than 400 attempts ( later eclipsed by Drew Brees in 2009 ).

In the regular season finale against the Buffalo Bills, Brady became the fourth quarterback to throw for 5, 000 yards in a single season, finishing with 5, 235 ; it surpassed Dan Marino's longstanding record of 5, 084 passing yards, but finished the season second behind Drew Brees ' 5, 476.

Warner and Green's combined gross passing yard total was 5, 492, which, if held by just one player, would surpass the single-season record held by Drew Brees ( 5, 476 yards ).

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.

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.

Brees started all 16 games for the Chargers during the 2002 season, leading the team to an 8-8 record.

Brees therefore remained the starter throughout the 2004 season, where he started 15 games and led the team to a 12-4 regular season record.

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.

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.

In week 12, Brees led the Saints to an 11 – 0 record, defeating the New England Patriots 38 – 17 on Monday Night Football.

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 immediately issued another statement to clarify, " My WMD comment has nothing to do with politics or our brave military.

The Chargers would go on to lose their season finale to the Broncos, with Brees suffering a dislocated shoulder to end the Chargers ' 9 – 7 season.

Brees, whose contract expired at the end of that season, left the team and would sign with the New Orleans Saints.

Rivers threw for 4, 254 yards ( 8th ), 28 TD's ( tied-6th ), 8. 8 yards per passing attempt ( 1st ), 64 completions of 20 + yards ( 1st ), only 9 INT's ( 4th with a minimum 400 pass attempts ), and a 104. 4 passer rating ( 3rd – only beaten by Drew Brees & Brett Favre ).

For middle school, he attended St. Andrew's Episcopal School, where he was friends and teammates with future Super Bowl MVP Drew Brees.

In 2010, Dawson presented the New Orleans Saints and another Purdue quarterback, Drew Brees, with the Vince Lombardi Trophy after their victory in Super Bowl XLIV.

Brees has been selected to the Pro Bowl six times in his career – with the Chargers in 2004 and the Saints in 2006, 2008, 2009, 2010, and 2011.

Brees has the highest career completion percentage among all quarterbacks in NFL history with at least 2, 500 + attempts – 65. 94 %.