Jalen Hurts’ stats in comparison with Drew Brees shows why he’s already elite

Jalen Hurts' statistical comparison with HOF Drew Brees adds serious weight to the argument that the Eagles star is already an elite QB.

Jalen Hurts’ stats in comparison with Drew Brees shows why he’s already elite

Drew Brees and Jalen Hurts (Via People/The Philadelphia Inquirer)

Since the Super Bowl LIX concluded with the Philadelphia Eagles’ decisive feat, Jalen Hurts appears to be the name on everyone’s mind. After he became the Super Bowl champion and Super Bowl MVP, fans and analysts alike are seriously contemplating whether the quarterback should be talked among the elite quarterbacks in the NFL. A fascinating statistical comparison adds serious weight to that argument. 

One of Jalen Hurts’ truly marvelous stats from 2024 was him setting a streak of 206 passes without throwing a single interception in his postseason career. This marks the second-longest streak of passes without interceptions behind Drew Brees, whose streak was 215 passes in the postseason.

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Stathead Football made an interesting head-to-head comparison between Hurts’ first four seasons and those of Hall of Fame quarterback Brees after the Super Bowl MVP demonstrated similar quarterback abilities with his no-interception streak like Brees once again.

“Jalen Hurts is simply ELITE,” wrote Dov Kleiman, sharing the post reflecting Hurts’ dual-threat capability as a modern contrast to Brees during his early career with San Diego Chargers.

Much to everyone’s surprise, there were striking similarities, and in some categories, the Eagles star proved to have a clear advantage, raising the question: Is Hurts already operating at an elite level?

Statistical comparison of Jalen Hurts and Drew Brees through first four seasons

In his first four full seasons as a starter, Hurts started 62 games and posted an Approximate Value (AV) of 71 which shows a significant advantage to him compared to Brees’ 48 in 52 games. Hurts also has a superior QB win record of 45-17-0 versus Brees’ 30-28-0. While both quarterbacks have high completion percentages, the reigning MVP is slightly more accurate at 65.4%, whereas the Hall of Famer sits at 62.3%. 

In terms of passing yards, Hurts racked up 13,606 versus 12,127 recorded by Brees. Moreover, Hurts also edges out Brees in key passing stats like yards per attempt (7.6 vs 6.8) and passing yards per game (219.5 vs 209.1). The only stat they were evenly matched was a passing touchdown count of 79 during this period. 

Jalen Hurts with Hall of Famer Drew Brees
Jalen Hurts with Hall of Famer Drew Brees (Via X)

Furthermore, Hurts has been picked off less with 35 interceptions to Brees’ 53, resulting in a higher passer rating of 94.8 for Hurts to 84.7 recorded by Brees. However, the most significant difference between both quarterbacks lies in their rushing abilities. As Hurts has demonstrated himself a dynamic threat on the field with 611 rushing attempts for 2,779 yards and 52 touchdowns. 

On the other hand, Brees was primarily a pocket passer, accumulating just 133 rushing attempts for 348 yards and four touchdowns. Even in terms of accomplishments in the first four years, Hurts leads with one championship, two Pro Bowl selections, one All-Pro selection, and one Super Bowl MVP; whereas Brees only had one Pro Bowl selection at this point in his career. 

While it is clear that Brees from 2007 onwards played at a level that we haven’t seen Hurts reach as a passer, the start of his career augurs well for the former Oklahoma and Alabama quarterback. Now that he has taken the monkey of a Super Bowl loss off his back with a win, Hurts should play much more pressure-free football.