Brady vs Manning

The debate is over! There is no longer any doubt which of the two "franchise" quarterbacks is the reigning king of the pigskin passers. (This will come as no surprise to any regular readers of JMO, however, there are statistics and reasons to follow) The winner is:

Tom Brady

How can this be when Peyton has won the last three times these two powerhouse teams have clashed? I'll tell you how. Peyton is 1-3 vs Tom in the playoffs. Scoring only 3 points in one contest and losing by multiple scores in his other two losses. For Manning to remove the crown from Tom's head and earn the right to wear it himself, he had to blow the Patriots out of the water. A performance in which the Colts won by 4 points and only lead for about a minute in the game was not nearly enough for the wannabe leader to overcome the current king.

The Patriots lost the first meeting this season by a score of 27-20. That's a fairly convincing victory. Let's look at a statistic that makes the score seem a bit more interesting: The Patriots had five (5) turnovers in that game! Three interceptions and two fumbles. Two of the interceptions were perfectly thrown passes that were misplayed by Brady's wide receivers and caught by fortunate Indianapolis defensive backs. That makes one interception that Brady could be faulted for (and that one was not converted into points by the Colts.) With such a turnover disparity, a truly amazing QB would have won by a much greater margin than Manning managed.

Manning apologists like to claim that Brady is a "system" quarterback. Meaning that he isn't great on his own, it's Belichick's system that makes him great, along with great receivers like Troy Brown. These people point to Brady's quick passes, underneath routes and passing on third and short. These same people have now pointed to the playoff victory by Peyton as their proof that he is better than Tom. The funny part about this is that Manning won the game on quick passes, underneath routes, and passing on third and short. (Passing on 3rd and short has been one of the strategies that raised Peyton's passer rating this year. He's got a passer rating in the high 50s on 1st and 2nd down, but his 3rd down rating is in the low 100s! Hello passing on third and short.) The biggest difference is Brady's ability to connect down the field. Recall the 3rd and long vs the Chargers, and Brady's 2 passes over 20 yards vs the Colts. Recall Peytons 0 passes that travelled 20+ yards in the air. Yes, there were a few passes that go in the record book as 20+ yards, but all of them were passes for less than 10 yards with a great run after the catch. Recall also the two major drops by Gaffney, one in the end zone and one when he was wide open and would have scored had he caught the stinkin' ball! Had either of those passes been completed we might be seeing a different team in the Big Game.

The biggest test of a quarterback is the post season. Peyton Manning has had 5 games where his passer rating was sub-fifty. Included in those five games were three that were sub-forty! Three of those five games were in the post season: One when the Colts were shut out by the Jets, and two against the Patriots. And even in his most recent victory against the Patriots, Mannings passer rating was lower than Brady's! Peyton was kept out of the end zone by Baltimore and unable to attain a higher passer rating vs New England. The post season is where Brady shines and where Manning disappears.

One final point: Peyton managed to squeeze out a four point victory with a supporting cast consisting of Marvin Harrison, Reggie Wayne, and Dallas Clark. The Patriots carried six receivers this year. Will everyone other than Apu please name two Patriot receivers that have not been mentioned already in this post, and a tight end. How'd you do? Basically, Peyton, along with 3 all Pro players managed to eek out a four point victory over Brady, a 40 year old Troy Brown, and a bunch of journeymen and rookies.

The debate is done. Even in defeat, Brady is clearly the best quarterback in the NFL today!

Is it just my opinion? I believe the facts speak for themselves. (If you'd like more, feel free to visit www.coldhardfootballfacts.com)