What do the Williams sisters, the Alomar brothers, the Ronde brothers, and the Upton brothers all have in common? If you are thinking pro athlete siblings, then you are correct. These groups of siblings are a rare group because they fall under the category of siblings who either played with or against each other in their pro careers. Once we start talking siblings in today’s sports world, for most of us, one name comes to mind, “Manning.” Peyton and Eli are probably the most talked siblings in today’s sports news. Well, why wouldn’t you talk about the Manning brothers when, indeed one of them (Peyton), will make his third appearance in Super Bowl XLVIII this Sunday.
If you were a pro athlete, what would be your motivation for playing each season? I assume your answer would be to become champions and receive multiple championship rings. Now, speaking of the Manning brothers, would you say Eli is better than Peyton because of the number of rings? Eli has won 2 super bowl rings; both coming against the New England Patriots. Peyton has 1 ring, hoping to get his 2nd Super Bowl victory this Sunday vs. the Seattle Seahawks. If at the end of each pro career, they get judged by the number of championships under their belts, then Eli Manning would be, without a doubt, better than his older brother Peyton. Many people wouldn’t agree with my point of view and would say to look at Peyton’s numbers and compare them to Eli’s numbers.. I do, indeed, think it is all about championships and how many times you get to host the Vince Lombardi trophy up in the air.
In my opinion, Peyton has the best numbers in regular season play than any other active QB in the league today. Not to mention the year he had in 2013 with the Denver Broncos (5,477 passing yds; 55 TD’s; 10 INT’s; 115.1 QBR). Peyton will go down as one of the best QB’s in NFL history and is a future Hall of Famer. But if he doesn’t get his second championship this year, what can it mean for Peyton’s future and his legacy? Can his regular season numbers be enough to say that he was better than his brother Eli? Can that say he was better than Brady (3 rings), Roethlisberger (2 rings), or Brees (1 ring)?
Let’s take a look at some numbers:
REGULAR SEASON STATS
|
QB |
Pass yds |
TD’s |
INT’s |
Pass RTG |
Com % |
Record |
|
Peyton Manning |
64,942 |
549 |
219 |
103.3 |
70.0 |
167-73 |
|
Eli Manning |
35,345 |
229 |
171 |
81.2 |
58.5 |
88-66 |
|
Tom Brady |
49,149 |
359 |
134 |
95.7 |
63.4 |
148-43 |
|
Drew Brees |
51,081 |
363 |
177 |
95.3 |
65.9 |
110-75 |
POSTSEASON STATS
|
QB |
Pass yds |
TD’s |
INT’s |
Pass RTG |
Com % |
Record |
|
Peyton Manning |
6,309 |
36 |
22 |
90 |
64.0 |
11-11 |
|
Eli Manning |
2,516 |
17 |
8 |
89 |
61.5 |
8-3 |
|
Tom Brady |
6,424 |
43 |
22 |
88 |
62.1 |
18-8 |
|
Drew Brees |
3,539 |
24 |
6 |
101 |
65.9 |
6-5 |
* Peyton (1), Eli (2), Roethlisberger (2), Brady (3), Brees (1) (# of rings)
Now that we have seen numbers, you be the judge on what matters most, either regular season numbers or Championship rings. Again, Peyton is the best QB of all time, but according to rings, he is 4th on the list tied with Brees. Brady leads the pack with 3 rings and is followed by Eli Manning and Ben Roethlisberger, both tied with 2.
You judge greatness by the number of championships they have under their belts. Why do you think Michael Jordan is remembered? What about Kobe Bryant? Yes, they both changed the game and dominated, but the truth of the matter is that championships speak volume. Championships are what determine you as greatness.
Being that Peyton is 38 yrs old and has come off 4 neck surgeries, can this be his last chance to change his legacy and put his last name deeper in the postseason conversation? Everyone knows how bad he was in playoffs and that was the headlines in the sports news leading into the playoffs this year. Has he done enough to prove the critics wrong? Or does he need to win SB XLVIII to silence the critics?
dcua22 