Drew Brees set the record for the most passing yards (5,476) in a single season in 2011, and on Thursday night against the Atlanta Falcons, he took another step toward reaching the record for the most passing yards in a career.
With a 17-yard pass to running back Pierre Thomas, the New Orleans Saints quarterback passed Warren Moon‘s 49,325-yard mark to move into fifth place on the league’s all-time passing yards list.
Here’s an updated look at the record book.
| Rank | Player | Career Passing Yards |
| 1 | Brett Favre | 71,838 |
| 2 | Peyton Manning | 63,059 |
| 3 | Drew Marino | 61,361 |
| 4 | John Elway | 51,475 |
| 5 | Drew Brees | 49,325 |
At 34 years old, Brees shows no signs of regressing as an elite quarterback anytime soon. If he passes for a little more than 4,000 yards five more times (he’s currently on pace for his eighth straight season of 4,000-plus yards), he would pass Favre before retiring. Peyton Manning may be the all-time record holder in just a few seasons, though.
Despite winning a Super Bowl against Manning in 2009, Brees is often given less recognition than other top quarterbacks, including Tom Brady, Aaron Rodgers and Manning when people debate which player in this group is the best at his position.
What cannot be debated, however, is that Brees is already one of the greatest quarterbacks ever and a future Hall of Famer. Very few players perform at an elite level as consistently as Brees, and that’s why several of the Saints’ most successful seasons in franchise history have occurred after he arrived in New Orleans in 2006.
