Tom Brady VS Peyton Manning: A Career Recap Of Two Future Hall Of Fame Quarterbacks

By Jesse Lucas

September 30, 2001. It was a week 3 match up between the Colts and their young franchise Quarter Back Peyton Manning and the Patriots with the Rookie out of Michigan. Little did we know that this would be the start to arguably the greatest player vs player rivalry in all of sports.

As life long Patriots fan I've enjoyed watching this Rivalry through the good and the bad for both sides. I'm happy to say that I have been witness to not just two future hall of fame Quarterbacks, but in my opinion the two best Quarterbacks in the history of the NFL (Obviously Tom Terrific is 1 and Manning is 2.)

As a Patriots fan I have a lot of fun poking fun at Peyton Manning and whatever team he happens to be on at the time. When it comes to the regular season though really no one has been as successful as Peyton Manning. This year we saw him pass Brett Favre all time passing TD record and if he plays for a couple more years at the high level he is currently playing at he could end his career with over 600 passing TD's. All joking aside you can't (even as the most die hard Patriots fan or Manning hater) discredit everything he has been able to accomplish in his amazing career. Like I said before I have no problem Putting him as the #2 greatest ever.

Now let's talk about the G.O.A.T. Tom Brady has done more with less for the better part of a decade. More post season wins than any QB in history, 3x Superbowl champion, 2x Superbowl MVP, 2x regular season mvp, 9 Pro Bowl selections, 5x AFC Champion, and not to mention the Patriots have become a regular staple in the AFC championship game pretty much since Brady took over as QB. Out of 12 seasons when Tom Brady could've made the AFC Championship game he has gone 8 times. The fact that Tom Brady has kept the Patriots so competitive without having all the weapons that Peyton Manning has had is the reason why I put him as the greatest of all time.

Now the games between these two players have been some of the best in recent NFL history. The game this week will be the 16th time these two meet on the field. Let's look back at the past games.

Brady vs Manning (Colts Era)

		Game Date
44	13	September, 30, 2001. Week 3
38	17	October, 21, 2001. Week 6
38	34	November, 30, 2003. Week 13
24	14	January, 18, 2004. AFC Championship
27	24	September, 9, 2004. Week 1
20	3	January, 16, 2005. AFC Divisional Round
21	40	November, 7, 2005. Week 9
20	27	November, 5, 2006. Week 9
34	38	January, 21, 2007. AFC Championship
24	20	November, 4, 2007. Week 9
34	35	November, 30, 2009. Week 10
31	28	November, 30, 2010. Week 11

Brady vs Manning (Broncos Era)

		Game Date
31	21	October, 7, 2012. Week 5
34	31	November, 24, 2013. Week 12
16	26	January, 19, 2014. AFC Championship

If you weren't keeping track that is a current record 10-5 with Brady having the lead. I'll state again that is with Brady not having as many weapons as Manning (Just a friendly reminder). And Let's not forget what is probably the best part of this rivalry. The meme war between fans. Yes this rivalry has sparked some very funny jokes and memes on both sides.

Those are funny. And I'm sure after this Sunday's game we will have even more. Whether you like Brady or Manning or neither or both, you can't deny that this is one of the greatest Rivalries we have ever seen. The realization that this Sunday (depending on how this season plays out) might very well be the last time these two ever face off again. The AFC West (Specifically the Chargers) are looking really good this year and could very well take the division away from the Broncos. If that happens for another year or two and they don't meet in playoffs this will most likely be the last time they play. I think that if manning makes it back to the Superbowl this will be his last year whether he wins or not. Brady wants to play til he is 40 which is another 2-3 years after this season, but you never know what will happen in the future. This makes me think about a sad future for the NFL when neither Brady or Manning is still playing in the NFL. So here is to going into this Sunday's going hoping it's not the last but enjoying it like it is.

Jesse Lucas writes for Draft Utopia. You can check out his blog at Post Game Sports Blog.

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