FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. - Peyton Manning is better than Tom Brady.
There. I said it. Call the cops. Have me arrested and sentenced to 10 years of hard time watching “Patriots All Access’’ and listening to programs called “Patriots Monday’’ and “Patriots Friday’’.
Sorry, folks. Sometimes the truth hurts. And the truth is that outside New England, this argument is over. Everywhere else in the continental United States. The proverbial ship has sailed and its name is the SS Peyton.
And yet back in Patriot country, fans soldier on, clinging to the past, unwilling to acknowledge the obvious.
Manning is better.
He wasn’t better in the first half of the decade, when Brady was orchestrating the comebacks and winning three Super Bowls, going a perfect 9-0 in the playoffs. He wasn’t better when Ty Law picked off three of his passes in the 2003 AFC Championship game at the Razor. And Manning couldn’t get his team in the end zone in the 2004 AFC Divisional playoff game at frosty Gillette, remember?
But that was then. This is now. For those of us living in the present, it’s time to give up the Ghost of Tom and face the truth.
The New England company line clings to the fact that Brady has three rings and Manning one. Brady is 14-4 in playoff games, Manning only 9-8. It’s all about championships and therefore, Tom is better.
No. By that yardstick, Sam Jones (10 championship rings) was a better NBA guard then Oscar Robertson, Jerry West, Magic Johnson, and Michael Jordan. Yogi Berra was a better catcher than Johnny Bench. Trent Dilfer was a better quarterback than Dan Marino.
Championships mean a ton. Clutch is crucial. We want guys who want the ball at the end of the game.
But the jewelry drawer is not the only measure of greatness. If rings are the only things that count, Joe DiMaggio was infinitely greater than Ted Williams.
Why is it so difficult for Patriots fans to concede on this one? Acknowledging Peyton is better than Tom doesn’t diminish Brady and his achievements. Not being as good as Manning doesn’t make you Jay Fiedler.
The whole thing reminds me a little of the American League shortstop argument at the turn of the millennium. For the longest time, there was debate regarding Nomar vs. Jeter vs. A-Rod. Garciaparra was a guy who could hit .370 and win batting titles and Jeter proved to be the sport’s consummate teammate/winner, but A-Rod was always the best player of the three. We’ve since learned he was a cheater and he’s been moved to third base, but A-Rod’s body of work overwhelms Nomie and Jeter and any neutral party could always see he was the better shortstop.