Cowboys’ task: Slowing down the Saints’ Brees
How do you solve a problem like Drew Brees?
The Austin native who turns 40 in January is the all-time leader in passing yards, completions, completion percentage and needs only 23 touchdowns to pass Peyton Manning for the all-time record.
Brees, simply put, is one of the greatest quarterbacks the game has ever seen and he’s still playing like he’s 29, not 39. The Saints (10-1) have the highest-scoring team in the league and Brees leads all quarterbacks with a career-high 127.3 rating, which would best Aaron Rodgers’ 2011 NFL record 122.5 rating. The Dallas Cowboys (6-5) host the Saints at 7:20 p.m. Thursday.
Brees is so effective because first and foremost he’s so accurate, Cowboys’ cornerback Byron Jones said. Defensive backs can have a receiver covered but Brees still routinely threads passes into the perfect spot, catchable, but also out of reach for an interception. His interceptions percentage 0.6 is the lowest of his career. He has thrown 29 touchdown passes and two picks.
“A lot of the throws he’s making the receivers are making hard catches,” said Jones, who is the No. 1 rated cornerback in the NFL according to Pro Football Focus. “[It’s] Drew Brees trusting his arm and trusting his ability.”
Jones said Brees is a master at letting his receivers go get passes. “A receiver is never fully covered if a quarterback throws it where it needs to be,” he said. “The receiver can go get it if he’s a good player and I think Drew Brees does a really good job of giving his receivers a chance to go up and get the ball.”
After three 7-9 finishes, New Orleans finished 11-5 a year ago and lost to the Vikings in the divisional playoffs on Stefon Diggs’ 61-yard touchdown catch as time expired. Brees threw two interceptions in the game.
Saints’ coach Sean Payton credits a sturdy offensive line that has only allowed 10 sacks. In contrast, Dak Prescott has been sacked a league-high 38 times.
“Clearly, it’s good to see the type of season he’s having and I think overall as a team they’re playing close attention to what wins games,” Payton said. “Each week it has been a different way, yet we’re finding ways to come out on top.”
The best way to defend a prolific quarterback such as Brees is with your offense. The Vikings held the ball almost seven more minutes than the Saints. In their lone loss this season, in the season-opener, the Tampa Bay Bucs had the ball four minutes longer than the Saints.
That will surely be Dallas’ intention Thursday night. Whatever it takes to keep Brees off the field.
“There’s really nothing on the field he can’t do,” Cowboys’ coach Jason Garrett said. “He’s a great leader, a great decision maker, tremendous athleticism, accuracy, confidence, the ability to deliver the ball to anywhere on the field. His command of what they do is incredible.”
This story was originally published November 26, 2018 at 8:00 AM.