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Drew Brees breaks Peyton Manning's passing record; does Matt Ryan have a shot?

Brees needed 201 yards to break Manning's hallowed mark, and the Purdue product required just one-plus quarter to make history.
Credit: Daniel Shirey

Saints quarterback Drew Brees became the NFL's all-time leader in passing yards Monday night, leapfrogging the legendary likes of Peyton Manning and Hall of Famer Brett Favre for the honor.

Entering the game with the Redskins, Brees needed 201 yards to break Manning's hallowed mark of 71,940 yards, and the Purdue product required just one-plus quarter to overtake Favre and Manning in one big swoop.

The record-breaker: A 62-yard touchdown pass to Tre'Quan Smith in the second quarter.

How did this occur? Conveniently, Manning and Favre were separated by only 102 yards.

It was only a matter of time before the 39-year-old Brees eclipsed all comers for the passing record. He's the only quarterback to pass for 5,000 yards in multiple seasons, and the future Hall of Famer has accomplished this feat a staggering five times—all with the Saints.

And considering how Brees will likely play an additional two years (beyond 2018), he represents a healthy lock for 80,000 yards, upon retirement.

Here's the very-short list of realistic challengers for Brees' record:

Tom Brady (67,418 yards ... 4th all time)

Matt Ryan (43,397 yards ... 15th all time)

Matthew Stafford (36,134 yards ... 26th all time)

Obviously, Ryan and Stafford are a decade away from threatening Brees' eventual final numbers, but they're certainly in the ballpark of contention.

**For Ryan (age 33) to reach the hypothetical mark of 80,000 yards, the Falcons quarterback would need to average 4,570 yards passing over the next eight seasons.

**For Stafford (age 30) to hit 80,000 yards ... with conservative annual averages of 4,700 yards passing, the former UGA star could potentially reach the golden plateau sometime during the 2028 campaign.

Either way, Brees should be good for a loooooooong time.

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