Brees' career was deemed to be over in 2005 by the San Diego Chargers. The Saints got a steal. The Chargers ended up with Phillip Rivers only because Eli Manning refused to play for them.
Brees - 571 TDs, 80,000 passing yds, 1 Super Bowl win
Rivers - 421 TDs, 63,000 passing yds, 0 Super Bowl wins
Manning - 366 TDs, 57,000 passing yds, 2 Super Bowl wins