Which QB Had a Better Performance (1 Viewer)

[David Yudkin]

As an offshoot of the other GOAT QB thread, which performance in your opinion was better? You can use any criteria to determine why you picked who you did (better numbers, INT not the QBs fault, winning or losing, outdoors/indoors, weather, etc.).

I'm curious as to how people view this, as this again is another example of Manning putting up bigger numbers (but not winning) and Brady putting up so-so numbers (but winning).

I suspect the stat geeks will say Manning and those that only care about winning or losing will say Brady . . .

 

[Road Warriors]

I went with Manning, but its pretty close. Manning gave his team a chance to win. If Wayne holds onto the 3rd down pass, who knows. And 2 of the 3 colts turnovers down in the red zone ( harrision fumble, Keith tip ) were not QB errors, but likely pulled 6-14 pts off the board. He had a pretty good game, all in all.

What threw the balance over to Manning, IMO, was the Cromartie pick in the endzone. It was the uncharacteristic mistake that really could have cost the team. Brady was not sharp, even his completions were frequently off the mark. Faulk had a great game catching everything near him, and bailed the Pats out of a couple of tough spots.

 

[Modog814]

I voted Manning, but if I could have I would have voted equal. Manning had better numbers, and Brady benefited from his players matching great catches on okay-to-poorly thrown balls (see K. Faulk). However, Brady won (although it had to do more with his defense than him), and Manning lost. I thought that was one of the worst games I've ever seen Brady play, but winning does count, so it's close. What gave Manning the edge for me was in a hypothetical world, if you could have put Brady and the way he played yesterday in place of Manning on the colts, the colts still would have lost (probably by more). And if you put Manning in place of Brady on New England, New England probably would have still won (and probably by more).

So what I'm saying is, if I could just look at their performances only, which effort would i rather have the "QB" on my team reproduce? The answer is Manning.

 

[((Morpheus))]

you forgot to include the weather conditions.

 

[J-Rock]

I'm not at all a stats guy. To me it's really all about winning. Having said that, I voted Manning. Imo he played the better game. Both picks came on tipped passes and I think he leads his team down the field for the win if his receivers don't drop catchable passes in ther final minutes.

 

[CalBear]

Manning played a better game. In addition to the INTs, Brady threw a critical third-down pass well behind Faulk, far worse than the pass Manning threw to Wayne; Wayne let the ball bounce off his hands for an interception (cost the Colts at least 3 points), Faulk made an incredible catch without stopping which kept the drive alive. Manning made a perfect fourth-down pass to Clark that not only should have gotten the first down, it looked like it would have gone for a big gain; Clark dropped it. It's really hard to fault Manning for anything that went wrong for Indy, while Brady made some mistakes that could have cost his team the game.

 

[pats3in4]

I'd give the nod to Manning. Keith had a TD, but let the pass bounce off his hands for the pick. Harrison's fumble was horrendous and also not Manning' fault. The 4th-and-goal from the 7 had no prayer since Ugoh didn't even bother to block Merriman (like Brady would have done better). On the final drive, the pass to Wayne was catchable (but I'll forgive him since he had his clock cleaned) as was the pass to Clark (no different than Stallworth's bobbling catch vs. Jacksonville).

Brady indeed has had better games, but let's also give the Chargers credit. The wind was a big factor, acting like an extra free safety on anything deep. Knowing this, the Chargers lined up bump-and-run, realizing that getting burned with accurate deep throws wasn't likely. Brady also said later that the Chargers did things that the Pats hadn't seen on film all year. However, I think the stuff the Chargers did was designed to take away from the passing game and dare the Pats to run, which they did in the 2nd half. Why the Chargers didn't change up is a mystery, but maybe the reason is that they would rather get beaten in small chunks and hope their redzone D holds (like Cromartie's pick) rather than load up the box and get torched on a Moss, Stallworth or Welker slant.

 

[The Man with the Plan]

What was the passer ratings of the 2 qb? That could shed more light.

 

[David Yudkin]

What was the passer ratings of the 2 qb? That could shed more light.

Brady 66.4 (and won)Manning 97.7 (and lost)I agree that the higher rating probably should win out, but in the other threads floating about some people seem to place a bigger emphasis on winning than peripheral stats.I'm not saying that either side is right or wrong, only that the opinions change from thread to thread.

 

[Master of Past and Present]

Manning had the better individual game while the Patriots had the better team game.

 

[Tau837]

I'm not saying that either side is right or wrong, only that the opinions change from thread to thread.

I watched both games and there is no question that Manning had the better game. Manning's performance was, if anything, better than the numbers indicate, and Brady's performance was definitely worse than the numbers indicate. If we could determine win shares or some form of a contribution to winning, Manning would be shown to have contributed more than Brady, but the rest of their teams did enough to offset their performances, in different directions.With regard to the seemingly never ending debate of Brady vs. Manning, I think the gap is much narrower, because Manning doesn't always play as well as he did two weeks ago, nor does Brady typically play as poorly as he did last week. That narrower gap causes many people to say that winning outweighs the numbers difference and puts Brady over Manning. But I doubt hardly anyone would say that if their career QB ratings were Manning 97.7 and Brady 66.4.So IMO this example you have chosen does not prove whether or not people are "changing from thread to thread".

 

[Liquid Tension]

As an offshoot of the other GOAT QB thread, which performance in your opinion was better? You can use any criteria to determine why you picked who you did (better numbers, INT not the QBs fault, winning or losing, outdoors/indoors, weather, etc.).I'm curious as to how people view this, as this again is another example of Manning putting up bigger numbers (but not winning) and Brady putting up so-so numbers (but winning).I suspect the stat geeks will say Manning and those that only care about winning or losing will say Brady . . .

I don't need to read the responses, but the 22% who voted for Brady obviously can only see wins and losses and don't understand that football is a team game. There is NO question Manning played better than Brady, even if you take the weather conditions into effect. I can see the quotes now from the 22%. "Brady won, Manning lost, end of discussion." They should change this to the guppy pool if 1/5 of the people really feel that way.

 

[Road Warriors]

What was the passer ratings of the 2 qb? That could shed more light.

Brady 66.4 (and won)Manning 97.7 (and lost)I agree that the higher rating probably should win out, but in the other threads floating about some people seem to place a bigger emphasis on winning than peripheral stats.I'm not saying that either side is right or wrong, only that the opinions change from thread to thread.

I think there is a significant difference in looking at a single game performance and a career. For me, it is very easy to identify which player performed better in a single game. The stats for a single game will tell most of the story. Occasionally, game situation may come into play, but generally speaking, the better statistical game indicates the player who performed better. What would have made for an interesting poll, but the situation didn't present itself, would be the following:Manning and Brady have the same stat lines for the games. However, the NE game plays out differently... NE falls behind by 4, gets the ball back with 2:30 to play, and Brady leads them to a game winning TD. Now, ask this same question of who performed better ( again, assuming the exact same stats ). I'd bet the poll turns signifcantly to Brady.When judging quality of play over a career, I think intangibles can be more of a contributing factor. The perception of "clutchness" whatever that means, will weigh in. Stats accumulated over several seasons are more indicative of several factors beyond just the quality of play for a given player. Coaching, offensive philosophy, surrounding talent, line play, etc all contribute ( I'm thinking the QB play here ) to how a player will accumulate stats over time. It seems like judging a career allows the one judging a lot more leeway in weighing contributing factors beyond the raw numbers.

 

[Peter_Griffin]

Manning had the better individual game while the Patriots had the better team game.

If you ask Manning, he'd say that Brady had the better game since the main goal is simply to win. How you get there, individual awards, statistics, etc. are just extras.If you asked the same question to two primadonna wide receivers, oh I don't know, maybe T.O. and Ocho Cinco, the end result is irrelevent as long as they get to say "hey look what I did"

 

[fred_1_15301]

Neither one of them played up to their standard but Manning clearly had the better game. Brady just looked out of it for whatever reason. This was one of the few playoff games that was won despite Brady rather than because of Brady. The defense, Maroney and Faulk bailed him out big time on this one.

ETA....He better not have a game like that in 2 weeks. The Giants have an offense capable of scoring tds rather than fgs when they get into the redzone. Without Tomlinson, the Chargers just couldn't do it.

 

[AB in DC]

Brady had a bad game. No other way to put it.

Manning wasn't great, either.

 

[discofan]

Manning. One individual does not make a team. You can have good performances on offense or defense and still lose and you can have poor ones and still win.

 

[phthalatemagic]

Manning.

Wins/losses is a team statistic.

 

[PatsFanCT]

As an offshoot of the other GOAT QB thread, which performance in your opinion was better? You can use any criteria to determine why you picked who you did (better numbers, INT not the QBs fault, winning or losing, outdoors/indoors, weather, etc.).I'm curious as to how people view this, as this again is another example of Manning putting up bigger numbers (but not winning) and Brady putting up so-so numbers (but winning).I suspect the stat geeks will say Manning and those that only care about winning or losing will say Brady . . .

I don't need to read the responses, but the 22% who voted for Brady obviously can only see wins and losses and don't understand that football is a team game. There is NO question Manning played better than Brady, even if you take the weather conditions into effect. I can see the quotes now from the 22%. "Brady won, Manning lost, end of discussion." They should change this to the guppy pool if 1/5 of the people really feel that way.

Are you nominating yourself as king of the guppy's then?It isn't really that cut and dry. Manning had better numbers, playing in a climate controlled windless stadium. How would his numbers have been in sub-freezing cold with some 20 mph wind gusts?I haven't voted in this, but it's far from "NO question".

 

[yellowdog]

Manning kept HIS team in the game. Brady kept the OPPONENT in the game. HTH

 

[Alias]

Manning.

 

[moleculo]

Manning clearly had a better game, no doubt.

Who had a better 4th quarter? this is a bit more interesting.

Brady went 7-7, for 63 yards (9 YPA), 1 TD and one sack. NE scored on one possession, ended game with second possession in scoring territory.

Manning went 10-22 for 149 yards (6.78 YPA) and 1 TD. Indy scored on one possession, punted once, and had two possessions end on downs.

Brady:Fourth Quarter2-6-50 	(15:00) (Shotgun) T.Brady pass short left to W.Welker pushed ob at SD 40 for 10 yards (A.Cromartie).1-10-SD20	(13:51) (Shotgun) T.Brady pass short left to L.Maroney to SD 11 for 9 yards (M.McCree). SD-C.Hart was injured during the play.2-6-SD6	(12:21) (Shotgun) T.Brady pass short left to W.Welker for 6 yards, TOUCHDOWN.1-10-NE25	(8:40) T.Brady sacked at NE 17 for -8 yards (sack split by I.Olshansky and S.Cooper).2-18-NE17	(8:04) (Shotgun) T.Brady pass short right to K.Faulk to NE 24 for 7 yards (D.Florence).3-11-NE24	(7:16) (Shotgun) T.Brady pass short right to K.Faulk to NE 35 for 11 yards (C.Hart).2-9-NE36	(5:49) (Shotgun) T.Brady pass short left to D.Stallworth pushed ob at NE 42 for 6 yards (E.Weddle).3-3-NE42	(5:17) (Shotgun) T.Brady pass short middle to K.Faulk to SD 44 for 14 yards (E.Weddle).1-10-SD20	(1:15) T.Brady kneels to SD 21 for -1 yards.2-11-SD21	(:39) T.Brady kneels to SD 22 for -1 yards. Patriots 18th straight win (including playoffs), tying 5 other teams for 2nd best streak in NFL history (Patriots 2003-04). Patriots 11th straight home playoff win.Manning:1-10-IND30	(14:54) P.Manning pass incomplete deep left to R.Wayne.PENALTY on SD-C.Hart, Defensive Pass Interference, 25 yards, enforced at IND 30 - No Play.1-10-SD45	(14:48) (Shotgun) P.Manning pass short middle to D.Clark to SD 20 for 25 yards (E.Weddle).PENALTY on IND-R.Diem, Unnecessary Roughness, 15 yards, enforced at SD 45 - No Play.1-25-IND40	(14:15) (Shotgun) P.Manning pass incomplete deep left to R.Wayne.PENALTY on SD-D.Florence, Defensive Holding, 5 yards, enforced at IND 40 - No Play.1-10-IND45	(14:09) (Shotgun) P.Manning pass short middle to J.Addai to 50 for 5 yards (S.Cooper).2-5-50 	(13:34) (Shotgun) P.Manning pass short middle to J.Addai to SD 49 for 1 yard (J.Tucker).3-4-SD49	(12:54) (Shotgun) P.Manning pass incomplete short middle to R.Wayne (D.Florence).2-9-IND45	(10:22) (Shotgun) P.Manning pass incomplete short right to M.Harrison (Q.Jammer).3-9-IND45	(10:16) (Shotgun) P.Manning pass deep left to A.Gonzalez for 55 yards, TOUCHDOWN. San Diego challenged the runner was in bounds ruling, and the play was Upheld. (Timeout #1 at 10:07.) 1-10-IND23	(4:45) (Shotgun) P.Manning pass short right to D.Clark to IND 37 for 14 yards (D.Florence, S.Cooper).1-10-IND37	(4:16) (Shotgun) P.Manning pass short middle to R.Wayne to IND 48 for 11 yards (S.Cooper).1-10-IND48	(3:52) (No Huddle, Shotgun) P.Manning pass short right to D.Aromashodu pushed ob at SD 39 for 13 yards (Q.Jammer).1-10-SD39	(3:44) (No Huddle, Shotgun) P.Manning pass short left to A.Gonzalez to SD 34 for 5 yards (A.Cromartie).2-5-SD34	(3:16) (No Huddle, Shotgun) P.Manning pass incomplete deep right to D.Aromashodu.3-5-SD34	(3:10) (Shotgun) P.Manning pass incomplete deep right to R.Wayne.4-5-SD34	(3:02) P.Manning pass short middle to D.Clark to SD 18 for 16 yards (E.Weddle).PENALTY on SD-S.Phillips, Face Mask (15 Yards), 9 yards, enforced at SD 18.2-7-SD7	(2:16) (Shotgun) P.Manning pass incomplete short right to J.Addai (D.Florence).3-7-SD7	(2:10) (Shotgun) P.Manning pass incomplete short middle to J.Addai.4-7-SD7	(2:06) (Shotgun) P.Manning pass incomplete short middle to J.Addai [S.Merriman].1-10-IND32	(1:30) (Shotgun) P.Manning pass short middle to J.Addai to IND 37 for 5 yards (D.Florence).2-5-IND37	(1:13) (No Huddle, Shotgun) P.Manning pass incomplete short left to J.Addai.3-5-IND37	(1:08) (Shotgun) P.Manning pass incomplete deep middle to R.Wayne (M.McCree). IND-R.Wayne was injured during the play.4-5-IND37	(1:03) (Shotgun) P.Manning pass incomplete short right to D.Clark.

 

[redman]

I went with Manning, but its pretty close. Manning gave his team a chance to win. If Wayne holds onto the 3rd down pass, who knows. And 2 of the 3 colts turnovers down in the red zone ( harrision fumble, Keith tip ) were not QB errors, but likely pulled 6-14 pts off the board. He had a pretty good game, all in all.What threw the balance over to Manning, IMO, was the Cromartie pick in the endzone. It was the uncharacteristic mistake that really could have cost the team. Brady was not sharp, even his completions were frequently off the mark. Faulk had a great game catching everything near him, and bailed the Pats out of a couple of tough spots.

 

[jade]

I'm a pats fan and even I have to go with manning.

 

[Modog814]

The way I feel about this is Manning put his team in a position to win the game, they didn't.

Brady put his team in a position to lose the game, they didn't.

 

[Road Warriors]

The way I feel about this is Manning put his team in a position to win the game, they didn't.

Brady put his team in a position to lose the game, they didn't.

That feels a bit overstated, IMO. Brady made uncharacteristic mistakes that kept the game closer than it could have been, but his mistakes weren't costly. To say he put them in position to lose the game would indicate some exceptional play had to extract the team from that position. The rest of the team played well, the defensive stands in the red zone are the single biggest reason they won the game. For the record, I also voted Manning had the better game.

 

[fred_1_15301]

The way I feel about this is Manning put his team in a position to win the game, they didn't.

Brady put his team in a position to lose the game, they didn't.

That feels a bit overstated, IMO. Brady made uncharacteristic mistakes that kept the game closer than it could have been, but his mistakes weren't costly. To say he put them in position to lose the game would indicate some exceptional play had to extract the team from that position. The rest of the team played well, the defensive stands in the red zone are the single biggest reason they won the game. For the record, I also voted Manning had the better game.

The mistakes weren't costly because his defense bailed him out. Come on man....you're one of the most objective Pats fans in this forum but you must admit that for one game Brady was saved by his team. The defense which has lived by the "bend don't break" mantra all year did not break in this game. The receivers who have made highlight reel type of catches all year made highlight reel type of catches in this game. Brady has been the most integral part of the team all year and deserves the MVP. However, he has had a whole lot of help. In this one game, the team won despite Brady's performance.

 

[David Yudkin]

So here is the follow up question . . .

If we multiplied these outcomes times 10, Manning would have much better stats and be 0-10 while Brady would be 10-0.

This gets us in a roundabout way to the other Brady GOAT thread. Most people are saying in here that in this particular game the rest of the Patriots bailed out Brady and Brady was meh. And I don't disagree. And I also agree that Brady has fared better in other playoff games and was a bigger contributor to winning 3 SB titles.

I'll spare the heavy lifting and statistical analysis, but the bottom line is Brady has a career post season passer rating of 88.5. Manning is only slightly worse at 84.4. Yet somehow Manning has gotten the rep of being a post season choke artist (even after winning a SB). (Regular season Manning is at 94.7 while Brady clocks in at 92.9.)

As I see it, neither one of these two is really all that better or worse than the other, but somehow every few months we get tangled up in a Manning/Brady debate as to who is the better QB.

 

[fred_1_15301]

So here is the follow up question . . .If we multiplied these outcomes times 10, Manning would have much better stats and be 0-10 while Brady would be 10-0. This gets us in a roundabout way to the other Brady GOAT thread. Most people are saying in here that in this particular game the rest of the Patriots bailed out Brady and Brady was meh. And I don't disagree. And I also agree that Brady has fared better in other playoff games and was a bigger contributor to winning 3 SB titles.I'll spare the heavy lifting and statistical analysis, but the bottom line is Brady has a career post season passer rating of 88.5. Manning is only slightly worse at 84.4. Yet somehow Manning has gotten the rep of being a post season choke artist (even after winning a SB). (Regular season Manning is at 94.7 while Brady clocks in at 92.9.)As I see it, neither one of these two is really all that better or worse than the other, but somehow every few months we get tangled up in a Manning/Brady debate as to who is the better QB.

They're both great qbs. Anyone who contests that is nuts. Since I suspect both of these guys will have a few more superbowl rings when it's all said and done, the debate will continue for a while. Manning is considered a choke artist because (with the exception of one year) his team loses in the playoffs and he's the qb.

 

[Neil Beaufort Zod]

Manning for sure. His performance kept the team in the game. Brady's kept the other team in the game. Give Manning Maroney's numbers and they win. Give Brady Addai's numbers and they might very well lose.

I'm not saying Brady was awful, but he's not the reason they won. Kevin Faulk also bailed him out of some not-so-great passes. On the other side, Keith bobbled a ball that ended up being intercepted and Clark missed a catchable (though no gimme) ball to end the final drive.

 

[Road Warriors]

The way I feel about this is Manning put his team in a position to win the game, they didn't.

Brady put his team in a position to lose the game, they didn't.

That feels a bit overstated, IMO. Brady made uncharacteristic mistakes that kept the game closer than it could have been, but his mistakes weren't costly. To say he put them in position to lose the game would indicate some exceptional play had to extract the team from that position. The rest of the team played well, the defensive stands in the red zone are the single biggest reason they won the game. For the record, I also voted Manning had the better game.

The mistakes weren't costly because his defense bailed him out. Come on man....you're one of the most objective Pats fans in this forum but you must admit that for one game Brady was saved by his team. The defense which has lived by the "bend don't break" mantra all year did not break in this game. The receivers who have made highlight reel type of catches all year made highlight reel type of catches in this game. Brady has been the most integral part of the team all year and deserves the MVP. However, he has had a whole lot of help. In this one game, the team won despite Brady's performance.

This was definitely a team win, as I mentioned, primarily on the D for the red zone stops and the o line and RBs for the clock killing 9 minute drive to end it. I guess I'm being a bit picky on the wording. When I hear the statement " put his team in a position to lose" I think pick-6, turnovers deep in your own end, things that really put points on the board for the other side. Its just a matter of degrees to me on this one. Brady played poorly. His team didn't, and they were able to win the game. I think its a bit of semantics to say the "overcame" Brady's poor game vs. the team played well enough to win. Brady did make some helpful plays in there, too.

 

[valhallan]

So here is the follow up question . . .

If we multiplied these outcomes times 10, Manning would have much better stats and be 0-10 while Brady would be 10-0.

This gets us in a roundabout way to the other Brady GOAT thread. Most people are saying in here that in this particular game the rest of the Patriots bailed out Brady and Brady was meh. And I don't disagree. And I also agree that Brady has fared better in other playoff games and was a bigger contributor to winning 3 SB titles.

I'll spare the heavy lifting and statistical analysis, but the bottom line is Brady has a career post season passer rating of 88.5. Manning is only slightly worse at 84.4. Yet somehow Manning has gotten the rep of being a post season choke artist (even after winning a SB). (Regular season Manning is at 94.7 while Brady clocks in at 92.9.)

As I see it, neither one of these two is really all that better or worse than the other, but somehow every few months we get tangled up in a Manning/Brady debate as to who is the better QB.

It's because they're close that we debate. If one was clearly better than the other there would be nothing to discuss.

 

[PsychoMan]

As an offshoot of the other GOAT QB thread, which performance in your opinion was better? You can use any criteria to determine why you picked who you did (better numbers, INT not the QBs fault, winning or losing, outdoors/indoors, weather, etc.).I'm curious as to how people view this, as this again is another example of Manning putting up bigger numbers (but not winning) and Brady putting up so-so numbers (but winning).I suspect the stat geeks will say Manning and those that only care about winning or losing will say Brady . . .

What about the people that simply watched the games?Yes Manning had the stats and Yes Brady has the win, but Manning LOOKED better from start to finish.

 

[Tau837]

The way I feel about this is Manning put his team in a position to win the game, they didn't.

Brady put his team in a position to lose the game, they didn't.

That feels a bit overstated, IMO. Brady made uncharacteristic mistakes that kept the game closer than it could have been, but his mistakes weren't costly. To say he put them in position to lose the game would indicate some exceptional play had to extract the team from that position. The rest of the team played well, the defensive stands in the red zone are the single biggest reason they won the game. For the record, I also voted Manning had the better game.

The mistakes weren't costly because his defense bailed him out. Come on man....you're one of the most objective Pats fans in this forum but you must admit that for one game Brady was saved by his team. The defense which has lived by the "bend don't break" mantra all year did not break in this game. The receivers who have made highlight reel type of catches all year made highlight reel type of catches in this game. Brady has been the most integral part of the team all year and deserves the MVP. However, he has had a whole lot of help. In this one game, the team won despite Brady's performance.

This was definitely a team win, as I mentioned, primarily on the D for the red zone stops and the o line and RBs for the clock killing 9 minute drive to end it. I guess I'm being a bit picky on the wording. When I hear the statement " put his team in a position to lose" I think pick-6, turnovers deep in your own end, things that really put points on the board for the other side. Its just a matter of degrees to me on this one. Brady played poorly. His team didn't, and they were able to win the game. I think its a bit of semantics to say the "overcame" Brady's poor game vs. the team played well enough to win. Brady did make some helpful plays in there, too.

I agree with you that the statement that they had to overcome Brady's poor game might be a bit overstated. But so is your statement that Brady's mistakes weren't costly... I mean, you can justify that statement with the end result that his team won, but to suggest that the 3 interceptions weren't costly is just as overstated as the other statement you initially responded to IMO. The primary example is his end zone interception, which directly cost the Pats points and prevented them from putting the game away earlier.

 

[Tau837]

So here is the follow up question . . .If we multiplied these outcomes times 10, Manning would have much better stats and be 0-10 while Brady would be 10-0. This gets us in a roundabout way to the other Brady GOAT thread. Most people are saying in here that in this particular game the rest of the Patriots bailed out Brady and Brady was meh. And I don't disagree. And I also agree that Brady has fared better in other playoff games and was a bigger contributor to winning 3 SB titles.I'll spare the heavy lifting and statistical analysis, but the bottom line is Brady has a career post season passer rating of 88.5. Manning is only slightly worse at 84.4. Yet somehow Manning has gotten the rep of being a post season choke artist (even after winning a SB). (Regular season Manning is at 94.7 while Brady clocks in at 92.9.)As I see it, neither one of these two is really all that better or worse than the other, but somehow every few months we get tangled up in a Manning/Brady debate as to who is the better QB.

But look deeper at the postseason numbers:Brady postseason QB ratings:below 70.0 - 2 times70.1 to 90.0 - 7 timesabove 90.0 - 7 timesManning postseason QB ratings:below 70.0 - 5 times70.1 to 90.0 - 4 timesabove 90.0 - 5 timesThat shows Brady to have a more top heavy spread across his postseason games. On top of that, here are Manning's 5 low games: 60.9, 31.2, 35.5, 69.3, 39.6. Compare that to Brady's 2 low games: 57.6 (last year at SD), 66.4 (this past week vs. SD). (If only Brady didn't have to play San Diego, it would be more lopsided. ) Three games in the 30s for Manning really hurts. An issue is that the sample size is small, so those few really bad games significantly drags down his overall postseason performance.On the flip side, Manning's top 3 ratings are all above Brady's best rating. So what it comes down to is that Brady has been more consistent and steady, which, given the caliber of his teams over these postseasons, is exactly what the Pats wanted/needed. The age old argument is that Manning's team has needed a strong performance from him to win more than the Pats have needed that from Brady, and this has presumably compelled Manning to be more aggressive, leading to more bad decisions and bad plays. But in comparing them, I'm not sure it matters what the reason is. The results speak.

 

[bostonfred]

I'll spare the heavy lifting and statistical analysis, but the bottom line is Brady has a career post season passer rating of 88.5. Manning is only slightly worse at 84.4. Yet somehow Manning has gotten the rep of being a post season choke artist (even after winning a SB). (Regular season Manning is at 94.7 while Brady clocks in at 92.9.)

Using Manning's cumulative statistics is the problem. Manning has played 14 playoff games. Five of them have involved multiple interceptions. Brady has three in sixteen games. Manning has thrown for at least one interception in nine of his fourteen games. Brady has thrown for at least one in seven of his sixteen games. One of those multi-interception games by Manning was a shutout loss. In another, he brought his team to a total of three points. Brady has never brought his team to less than 13. Manning has only led his team to 20 points or more seven times, or half the games he's played. Brady has done it 13 times. Manning has thrown for multiple TDs four times in 14 games. Brady has thrown multiple TDs eight times in sixteen games. Manning has thrown for a TD in ten of his fourteen appearances. Brady has thrown for a TD in fourteen of his sixteen playoff appearances. The other two were in 2001, including the Pittsburgh game where he left with an injury in the first half, and the Oakland game where he ran one in. Brady's QB ratings en route to his 2004 Superbowl:92.2130.5110.2Manning's QB ratings en route to his 2006 Superbowl:71.939.679.181.8Brady's worst QB rating in the playoffs was 57.6. Manning has had three playoff games with QB ratings in the 30s. The only reason Manning's career QB ratings in the playoffs are even remotely comparable to Brady's is that he played Denver and KC in a three game stretch where he put up 12 TDs against one INT. Unfortunately, after throwing for 8 TDs against 0 INTs in two games in the 2003-4 postseason, Manning followed it up with 1 TD and 4 INTs in his next game. The following year, after leading the season where he temporarily set the record for passing TDs, he started the playoffs with a 4 TD/ 1 INT performance, then followed it by leading them to exactly three points in New England. Even last year, when he led the comeback against the Patriots, it was only once the Patriots defense had been decimated that he started to shine. He put the team in a hole early. Manning's spectacular games have been spectacular. But his bad games have been awful. And he was dragged to the Superbowl by his defense and running game last year more than Brady ever was. Maybe it's unfair to criticize Manning because he's played against the Patriots in the playoffs. But the only defenses that have given Brady trouble have been the Chargers defense that gave Manning trouble, too, and the Champ Bailey led Broncos. Manning has struggled against the Jets, New England, Kansas City, Baltimore and San Diego. It's not just New England, it's really any time he faces a top defense. Now if you had asked me the question, which QB would you want if you had to beat a bad team by as much as possible, I might have picked Manning. Until this year. But now you can't even pick him for that. I really can't see too many reasons why you'd rather have Manning than Brady.