NFL Roundtable: The Best Tom Brady vs. Peyton Manning Game

There is no more enduring rivalry in pro football history between two players than Tom Brady vs. Peyton Manning.  The two are the best of a generation and maybe the two best in NFL history.  To think they have played each other 16 times over their careers is staggering.  Several of the contests have had a trip to the Super Bowl on the line, others were just thrilling regular season clashes.  What is most difficult is picking out which games were the best.  So we asked the Mocks crew to offer their opinion on the Brady vs. Manning debate in the latest NFL roundtable.

What game stands out the most?

Eric Robinson:

Easily the 2007 AFC title game in my opinion. Peyton’s first playoff victory over Brady. Down 21-6 at the half and it looked as if Peyton was going to take another one on the chin from Brady and the Pats. CB Marlin Jackson with the game sealing INT and Peyton walking on the field trying his hardest to hide his smile. Classic moment.

Brady Lunt:

The 2006-07 AFC championship game. With Brady’s utter dominance in this rivalry and the Colts down by a large deficit, it seemed Peyton was destined for another defeat at the hands of Tom Brady. But Manning rallied the troops and fought back hard, stunning the Patriots 38-34. This led Peyton to his one and only Super Bowl over the Bears. If Peyton was ever going to be considered one of the greatest of all-time, it seemed he needed that kind of finish to the season.

Kyle McKinnon:

Besides the 2007 AFC title game, I’d have to go with their 2009 Sunday night meeting in Indy. It was nothing short of an incredible game. Vintage Randy Moss was on full display, there was the infamous 4th-down gamble by Belichick, which subsequently led to Manning capping the Colts 17-point comeback with a short dart to Reggie Wayne, who made a beautiful fingertip catch, giving the Colts a 35-34 victory. It doesn’t get much better than that.

Sayre Bedinger:

It’s got to be the playoff game where Manning and the Colts overcame a 21-3 deficit. That’s the one that stands out most in my mind, anyway. The rivalry has been great because of how good the two players are, but it’s largely been dominated by Brady. Manning getting the upperhand has both the ‘underdog’ quality but for him to also do it in the playoffs down basically by three touchdowns is phenomenal. That was one of the most memorable games ever for me.

Erik Lambert:

Normally I try to find players, coaches or games who might’ve been missed but in this case there really isn’t a debate.  The pinnacle of the Manning-Brady greatness was achieved in the 2006 AFC championship.  The storylines were like out of a novel.  Manning, still without a ring had been haunted by the Patriots for the past three years, losing to them twice in the playoffs.  Yet after beating them in the regular season, he really thought it was his time since he finally had home field on his side.

Then the Patriots jumped out to a 21-3 lead, including a pick-six by Manning himself.  In previous cases the Colts would’ve folded.  However, a season full of close calls and overcoming adversity had taught them not to panic.  Led by Manning, they fought their way back and the game soon evolved into a back-and-forth battle between the two best quarterbacks in football.  Fittingly though, it ended on a game-winning rushing touchdown by Joseph Addai and game-clinching interception by the Colts defense.

It was the NFL at its absolute best.