'Who's better? I don't know': Peyton Manning, Tom Brady aren't stoking debates
If you want Peyton Manning or Tom Brady to proclaim, "I'm better than him!," keep waiting.
The quarterbacks chatted on Brady's "Let's Go!" podcast this week, turning it into a mutual admiration society.
Host Jim Gray asked both players how they came to respect each other and avoid the pettiness that sometimes accompanies sports rivalries. They said their friendship started with casual offseason meetings at charity golf events or the Kentucky Derby, which both attend most years.
The quarterbacks also recognized the effort it took to accomplish what the other did.
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"If I performed well, it never meant anything against anyone else," Brady said. "People inside barber shops and on talk shows, they always make it this against that. They compare things that are completely ridiculous. But when you're in the arena and you're one of the competitors, you don't do those things. I never wanted to be better than Peyton Manning. I just wanted to be the best I could be.
"Any year, any football team would take Peyton Manning as their starting quarterback. There's probably five or 10 of us that played that way. Who's better? I don't know. (It's like asking,) What do you like to eat? Some person likes this. Some person likes that.
"It's not petty because there's a respect that you know how hard it was for Peyton to do what he did. I recognize that."
Manning jokingly said he had to be careful when visiting the Boston area.
"I was in Boston one time. I called Tom. 'I don't want to leave my hotel. They're gonna shoot me. They're gonna beat me up. Can you come and pick me up and take me out to dinner. I know no one's gonna hurt me if I'm with you.'"
"You're competing," Manning added. "You're trying to do what you can for your team, but you just can't avoid the respect that you have because of the way Tom went about his business."
Tom Brady vs. Peyton Manning
For anyone at a barber shop or on a talk show, here are the particulars:
Tom Brady passed for an NFL-record 89,214 yards and 649 touchdowns, and has been on seven Super Bowl-winning teams, earning game MVP honors five times. He was a three-time NFL MVP. He will be voted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame the instant he is eligible.
Peyton Manning passed for 71,940 yards and 539 TDs (third most), was on two Super-Bowl winning teams and was a five-time MVP in a Hall of Fame career.
Brady played 50 more regular-season games than Manning. In 17 matchups of their teams, Brady's team won 11 times.
This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Peyton Manning, Tom Brady have mutual respect for NFL careers
