Drew Brees was in a funk like the rest of the Saints early last season but he caught fire in the 2nd half.  If he can be consistent this whole year the Saints should make a return trip to the playoffs because the division appears vulnerable and the Saints appear to have repaired the defense.  Brees doesn’t have the biggest arm in the league and he is not very mobile but, he is very effective at play action and his short passes are very crisp.  Brees started all 16 games for the Saints last season and he completed 440 of 652 passes (67.5%) for 4,423 yards with 28 TD passes and 18 interceptions (89.4 QB Rating).  He also carried the ball 23 times for 52 yards (2.3 ypc) with 1 TD run.  Look for Drew Brees to have another Pro Bowl type season if he can stay healthy all year.  Brees has now played in 91 games (90 starts) in his NFL career and he has completed 1,921 of 3,015 passes (63.7%) for 21,189 yards with 134 TD passes and 82 interceptions (87.9 QB Rating).  He also carried the ball 200 times for 450 yards (2.3 ypc) with 5 TD runs.

The Saints have brought in 37-year old lefty Mark Brunell to battle Tyler Palko for the backup job.  If Brunell has anything left he will easily beat out Palko.  Brunell was in the Redskins’ Dog House last season as he was the #3 QB there and he didn’t play at all.  That means he should be well rested.  Brunell has enough arm to probably be effective in the Saints’ offense but he can’t really move well anymore despite being a good runner early in his career.  Brunell has now played in 157 games (150 starts) in his NFL career and he has completed 2,738 of 4,594 passes (59.6%) for 31,826 yards with 182 TD passes and 106 interceptions (84.2 QB Rating).  He also has carried the ball 509 times for 2,433 yards (4.8 ypc) with 15 TD runs.

Tyler Palko will get a shot to beat out Mark Brunell but we won’t likely win the job.  Palko has a weak arm but he is very effective at running the ball and buying time in the pocket to throw.  He has not appeared in a NFL game yet in his career and if he does this year the Saints will be in trouble.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE 2008 SEASON:  B+