As Pablo Escobar once said, “There can only be one king,” there can also be only one legendary quarterback in the National Football League (NFL). The only names that come to mind when one hears “legendary quarterback” are Peyton Manning and Tom Brady.
Peyton Manning completed 18 seasons, 14 with the Indianapolis Colts and 4 with the Denver Broncos, before retiring from the sport in 2016. He was the first overall pick in the 1998 NFL Draft and went on to become one of the best quarterbacks in the League. He is known not only for his physical skills as an athlete but also for his high intellect and offensive strategies that have aided in his victories against all rivals.
Speaking of rivals, Tom Brady is the 199th overall pick in the sixth round of the 2000 NFL Draft. He has played 20 seasons with the New England Patriots, and two with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Although Brady entered the sport 2 years after Manning, he has managed to give a tough competition to Manning for the title of the greatest quarterback of all time. Brady continued to add to his buffed up stats after Manning’s retirement and returned for a final season with the Buccaneers after initially announcing retirement after the 2021 season.
Peyton Manning Vs Tom Brady Career Stats
Both Peyton and Brady have a spectacular record in their career stats, however Brady takes the lead in regular season attempted passes, pass completions, passing yards and touchdowns. But this may be due to Brady having played more games despite entering the sport much later as compared to Manning. Peyton with his 5 NFL MVPs is also tough competition.
| Peyton Manning | Tom Brady | Peyton Manning | Tom Brady | |
| Regular Season | Playoffs | |||
| Games (G) | 266 | 316 | 27 | 47 |
| Attempted Passes (ATT) | 9,380 | 11,317 | 1,027 | 1,855 |
| Pass Completions (COMP) | 6,125 | 7,263 | 649 | 1,165 |
| Completion Percentage (PCT) | 65.3 | 64.2 | 63.2 | 62.8 |
| Passing Yards (YDS) | 71,940 | 84,520 | 7,339 | 13,049 |
| Average Yards per Game (AVG) | 7.7 | 7.5 | 7.1 | 7.0 |
| Yards per Game (YDS/G) | 270.5 | 265.8 | 271.8 | 277.6 |
| Touchdowns (TD) | 539 | 624 | 40 | 86 |
| Interceptions Thrown (INT) | 251 | 203 | 25 | 39 |
| Longest Pass Play (LNG) | 86 | 99 | 87 | 73 |
| Sacks (SK) | 303 | 543 | 40 | 79 |
| Passer Rating (RATE) | 96.5 | 97.6 | 87.4 | 90.4 |
| Rushing Yards (RSH YDS) | 667 | 1,124 | 34 | 133 |
| Rushing Attempts (RSH ATT) | 431 | 664 | 32 | 114 |
| Rushing Touchdowns (RSH TD) | 18 | 27 | 3 | 7 |
| Super Bowl Wins | - | - | 2 | 7 |
| Super Bowl MVPs | - | - | 1 | 5 |
| NFL MVPs | 5 | 3 | - | - |
Manning Vs Brady Super Bowls
While Manning has won two Super Bowls out of the four that he appeared in - one each with the Colts and Broncos, and was the first player to win a Super Bowl with more than one franchise - Tom Brady’s record of seven Super Bowl wins is not one that can be defeated easily. Brady made history as the only player with the highest number of Super Bowl wins.
| Peyton Manning | Tom Brady | |
| Super Bowl Appearances | 4 (2007, 2010, 2014, 2016) | 10 (2002, 2004-2005, 2008, 2012, 2015, 2017-2019, 2021) |
| Super Bowl Wins | 2 (XLI, 50) | 7 (XXXVI, XXXVIII, XXXIX, XLIX, LI, LIII, LV) |
| Super Bowl MVPs | 1 (XLI) | 5 (XXXVI, XXXVIII, XLIX, LI, LV) |
Peyton Manning vs Tom Brady AFC Championships
Tom Brady is the only quarterback to be starting quarterback for a record 9 AFC championships, while Peyton Manning has only started 4 AFC championships, 2 for each of the two franchises he played for.
| Peyton Manning | Tom Brady | |
| AFC Championships Started | 5 ( 2003,2006,2009, 2013, 2015) | 10 (2001, 2003, 2004, 2007, 2011, 2014, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019) |
| AFC Championships Won | 4 | 9 |
Manning vs. Brady head-to-head
Peyton Manning and Tom Brady have played against each other, head-to-head, 17 times. With 7 Super Bowl wins out of 10 appearances, Brady leads the head-to-head 11-6 against Manning who has won 2 out of the 4 Super Bowls he appeared in.
The two rival quarterbacks played against each other every season of their career, except 2008, 2011 and 2015, due to injuries.
Brady consistently led the New England Patriots 8-4 against the Indianapolis Colts, and then 3-2 against the Denver Broncos.
Manning won three of the four AFC championships against Brady during the Playoff where they played against each other 5 times.
Manning vs Brady: Who is the better NFL player?
A simple statistical analysis would reveal that Tom Brady has been consistently outperforming his rival, Peyton Manning in every aspect.
Even after Peyton’s retirement in 2016, their rivalry has continued off-field, and into a golf match to raise funds for Covid-19 pandemic relief.
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