When Peyton Manning and Tom Brady meet in the 2016 AFC Championship game, they’ll extend a lengthy rivalry that many believe is the greatest in North American sports history.
Whether you agree with those sentiments or not, all eyes will be undoubtedly be on Manning and Brady when they take to the gridiron in Denver for their fourth AFC Championship game showdown.
With that said, and this weekend’s conference clash quickly approaching, you’re going to get some expert information on the long rivalry between Brady and Manning that will undeniably help you in your efforts to cash in on this season’s AFC Conference championship.
Bill Belichick is already annoyed by people talking about Peyton Manning and Tom Brady. https://t.co/GJ6Z5UOiCY
With the exceptions of 2008 and 2011, Manning and Brady have met every single season since 2003. While Manning looks to make his fourth Super Bowl appearance and win his second – Brady is looking to bag his fifth Super Bowl title and second straight championship after winning it all last season.
While Brady has gone 11-5 in 16 career head-to-head meetings against Manning, Denver’s aging signal-caller has compiled a dead-even 2-2 playoff record against New England’s franchise quarterback that includes a spotless 2-0 mark over the last two meetings and 2-1 mark in their three conference championship clashes.
Rarely have the meetings between the two superstars been as exciting as previously billed. In 2007, Manning’s Indianapolis Colts stormed back from a 21-3 deficit to win the 2007 AFC Championship Game 38-34.
In 2009, Manning’s one-yard touchdown pass to Reggie Wayne with 13 seconds remaining lifted Indy to a thrilling 35-34 win following Patriots coach Bill Belichick’s infamous gamble on fourth-and-2 in his own territory.
Peyton Manning and Tom Brady
The average score of the games between the pair has Brady’s team putting up 29.9, points per contest while Manning’s teams have averaged 24.5 points per game. Manning has completed 410 of 657 passes (62.4%) for 4,809 yards with 33 touchdowns and 22 interceptions while compiling a solid quarterback rating of 87.4. Conversely, Brady has completed 367 of 553 passes (66.4%) for 4,013 yards with 31 TDs and 13 interceptions for a quarterback rating of 96.5.
Wile this season’s meeting will have a different look with Manning quickly aging and playing in more of a ball-control offense and Brady still looking and playing like a spry 20-year-old.
“It’s been a unique season, a lot of new things have happened this season, kind of like tonight,” said Manning, who replaced backup Brock Osweiler in Denver’s regular season finale to lead the Broncos to a thrilling win over San Diego to secure the No. 1 seed in the AFC playoffs. “We stayed patient tonight. We never really got frustrated and that served us well tonight and it served me well this season.”
With Manning throwing the ball less, the Broncos will look to their stupendous defense to lead them to victory over Brady and company.
“Our defense is guiding us. Let’s make that clear. They played great all season,” Manning said. “They were dominant today against a high-powered offense.”
New England has won three of four since Manning joined the Broncos in 2012, but the Broncos beat the Pats 26-16 in the 2014 AFC Championship game.
