[StBernard] Brees for FedEx Air Player of the Year

[Westley Annis]

Drew Brees Finalist for NFL FedEx Air Player of the Year!	

Quarterbacks DREW BREES of the New Orleans Saints, PEYTON MANNING of the
Indianapolis Colts and CARSON PALMER of the Cincinnati Bengals are the
finalists for 2006 FedEx Express NFL Player of the Year honors, while
running backs FRANK GORE of the San Francisco 49ers, LARRY JOHNSON of the
Kansas City Chiefs and LA DAINIAN TOMLINSON of the San Diego Chargers are
the finalists for 2006 FedEx Ground NFL Player of the Year honors, the NFL
announced today.

Fans can vote for one player in each category on
<http://www.fedexfootball.com> from 9:00am ET on Tuesday, January 9 through
12 noon ET on Wednesday, January 24 to determine the 2006 FedEx Air & Ground
NFL Players of the Year. 

The FedEx Air & Ground NFL Players of the Year will be announced on
Wednesday, January 31 during a press conference the week of Super Bowl XLI
in South Florida. 

Fans will be voting for more than their favorite player. The local
children's hospitals in the two winners' markets will be awarded $25,000
each. In addition, in honor of the Super Bowl host region, FedEx will donate
$25,000 to Miami Children's Hospital in South Florida. The weekly FedEx Air
& Ground NFL Players of the Week Awards were a win all season for the local
community. Along with the award, FedEx donated $5,000 every week to the
local children's hospital in each winning market. That means that FedEx will
deliver nearly $250,000 to local children's hospitals around the country in
recognition of the 2006 FedEx Air & Ground NFL Players of the Week Award
winners. 

A closer look at the FedEx Express NFL Player of the Year finalists:

*	. New Orleans' Drew Brees led the NFL with 4,418 passing yards,
ranked third in touchdown passes with 26, and was the third-ranked passer
with a rating of 96.2. Completing 356 of 554 passes on the season, Brees
recorded eight 300-yard passing games, including a string of five in a row
from Week 8 to Week 12. Brees was nominated for three FedEx Express NFL
Player of the Week awards in 2006, winning all three times. 
*	. Indianapolis' Peyton Manning led the NFL with a 101.1 passer
rating and 31 touchdown passes. He completed 362 of 557 passes for 4,397
yards, second in the league. Manning threw two or more touchdowns in nine of
16 games and recorded at least 250 passing yards 10 times. He was nominated
for four FedEx Express NFL Player of the Week awards this season. 
*	. Cincinnati's Carson Palmer completed 324 of 520 passes for 4,035
yards and a passer rating of 93.9, and his 28 touchdown passes ranked second
in the NFL. He threw for two or more touchdowns in 10 of 16 games and threw
for more than 250 yards in eight games. Palmer was nominated for two FedEx
Express NFL Player of the Week awards, winning both times. 

A closer look at the FedEx Ground NFL Player of the Year finalists:

*	. San Francisco's Frank Gore ranked third in the NFL with 1,695
rushing yards on 312 carries. He ran for eight touchdowns with an average of
5.4 yards per carry. Gore also caught 61 passes for 485 yards and one
touchdown. He was nominated for four FedEx Ground NFL Player of the Week
awards in 2006. 
*	. Kansas City's Larry Johnson ranked second in the NFL with 1,789
rushing yards and 17 rushing touchdowns on an NFL-record 416 carries this
season. Johnson also caught 41 passes for 410 yards and two touchdowns. He
was nominated for seven FedEx Ground NFL Player of the Week awards this
season. 
*	. San Diego's LaDainian Tomlinson led the league with 1,815 rushing
yards and an NFL-record 28 touchdown runs on 348 carries. Tomlinson added 56
receptions for 508 yards and three touchdowns and threw two touchdown
passes. His 31 combined rushing and receiving touchdowns was also a record.
Tomlinson was nominated for nine FedEx Ground NFL Player of the Week awards,
winning eight times. 

FedEx, the premier global provider of transportation, e-commerce and
supply-chain management services, is the Official Delivery Service Sponsor
of the NFL, Super Bowl and Pro Bowl. Through the weekly FedEx Air & Ground
Awards, FedEx recognizes those NFL players who represent the same speed,
precision and teamwork that their customers have come to expect from the
full range of FedEx air, ground, freight and international shipping
services.