Drew Brees vs Philip Rivers

2of 3 lines

1of 3 lines

Drew Brees and Philip Rivers compared on their NFL careers: Drew Brees played 20 seasons, 2001 to 2020, Philip Rivers 18 seasons, 2004 to 2025. Drew Brees has 80,358 passing yards to Philip Rivers's 63,984. They have faced each other 3 times: Drew Brees's team won 3, Philip Rivers's 0. Drew Brees won 1 title.

Who has the better career numbers?

Drew Brees leads in 2 of the 3 lines, Philip Rivers in 1. Bold marks the better figure; playing time — games, minutes, at-bats, innings — is not scored.

Drew Brees and Philip Rivers career totals

287	GP	247
80,358, better	YDS	63,984
571, better	TD	425
7.6	AVG	7.8, better

Drew Brees vs Philip Rivers head to head

They have faced each other 3 times: Drew Brees's team won 3, Philip Rivers's 0.

Drew Brees and Philip Rivers, record against each other
Games	Played	Drew Brees won	Philip Rivers won
Regular season	3	3, better	0

Drew Brees and Philip Rivers, averages in their games against each other

27.3, better	CMP	26.7
40.7	ATT	41.7, better
305.3	YDS	338.7, better
3.0, better	TD	2.3
1.0	INT	1.0

Every game against each other

Drew Brees vs Philip Rivers, every game

Oct 2, 2016	NO at LAC	W 35-34	23 CMP, 36 ATT, 207 YDS, 2 TD, 2 INT	28 CMP, 43 ATT, 321 YDS, 2 TD, 1 INT
Oct 7, 2012	LAC at NO	W 31-24	29 CMP, 45 ATT, 370 YDS, 4 TD, 1 INT	27 CMP, 42 ATT, 354 YDS, 2 TD, 1 INT
Oct 26, 2008	LAC at NO	W 37-32	30 CMP, 41 ATT, 339 YDS, 3 TD, 0 INT	25 CMP, 40 ATT, 341 YDS, 3 TD, 1 INT

Games both played on opposite sides, from the game logs on file; the record is their teams’.

How do they compare in the playoffs?

Drew Brees and Philip Rivers postseason

18	GP	12
5,366, better	YDS	2,965
37, better	TD	16
7.4	AVG	7.4

Where each stands all time

Drew Brees and Philip Rivers all-time places

2nd (80,358), better	Passing yards	8th (63,984)
2nd (571), better	Passing touchdowns	7th (425)

Among the NFL players with a career line on file, regular season, counting stats only — the same lists the records pages run on.

Titles and awards

Drew Brees and Philip Rivers titles and awards

1, better	Championships	—
2, better	Offensive Player of the Year	—
1, better	Super Bowl MVP	—
—	Comeback Player of the Year	1, better

Awards come from the league’s published winner lists; a championship counts a season played for the club that won it.

Season by season

Lined up by career year, not by calendar: each row is the players’ nth season.

Drew Brees and Philip Rivers season by season

1st	2001	221, better	1	0	2004	33	1	0
2nd	2002	3,284, better	17, better	16	2005	115	0	1, better
3rd	2003	2,108	11	15	2006	3,388, better	22, better	9, better
4th	2004	3,159, better	27, better	7, better	2007	3,152	21	15
5th	2005	3,576	24	15	2008	4,009, better	34, better	11, better
6th	2006	4,418, better	26	11	2009	4,254	28, better	9, better
7th	2007	4,423	28	18	2010	4,710, better	30, better	13, better
8th	2008	5,069, better	34, better	17, better	2011	4,624	27	20
9th	2009	4,388, better	34, better	11, better	2012	3,606	26	15
10th	2010	4,620, better	33, better	22	2013	4,478	32	11, better
11th	2011	5,476, better	46, better	14, better	2014	4,286	31	18
12th	2012	5,177, better	43, better	19	2015	4,792	29	13, better
13th	2013	5,162, better	39, better	12, better	2016	4,386	33	21
14th	2014	4,952, better	33, better	17	2017	4,515	28	10, better
15th	2015	4,870, better	32	11, better	2018	4,308	32	12
16th	2016	5,208, better	37, better	15, better	2019	4,615	23	20
17th	2017	4,334, better	23	8, better	2020	4,169	24, better	11
18th	2018	3,992, better	32, better	5	2025	544	4	3, better
19th	2019	2,979	27	4	—	—	—	—
20th	2020	2,942	24	6	—	—	—	—

What the columns mean: INT