clock menu more-arrow no yes mobile

Filed under:

More Brady v. Manning

Hold my hand and smile, Tom.
So, Tommasse at Pats Pulpit responded to my response about his Brady is better than Manning post.
One big complaint is that I used "averages" instead of straight numbers. To that I say, "Of course Manning has more yards and touchdowns. He's played three full seasons more." Pretty obvious.

Hence, averages. Last I took a statistics class, which admittedly was a long time ago, averages are pretty key calculations in comparing statistics, and other calculations, like standard deviations, are derivative of averages.

Sorry, but averages of this kind are not an acceptable calculation method when it comes to comparing two players and their statistics. Averages PERIOD are bad when making statistical comparisons of any kind. All that does is weaken your argument and open it up for idiots like me to tear it to pieces. If the numbers don't stand on their own, then your argument (statistically speaking) is very weak. Read Tommasse's comments and you'll see fans, pretty much in unison, disagreeing with Tommasse's opinion that Brady, statistically, is superior to Manning.

In terms of the stats, Manning blows Brady completely out of the water. Absent from Tommasse's entire evaluation is the fact that throughout Brady's entire career he has had a defense ranked consistently in the top 10. Because of this, Brady has needed to throw the ball less because, quite frankly, he doesn't have to score as much to win. Meanwhile, in Colt Land, Peyton Manning has had a top 10 defense once in his entire nine year career.

Once.

Last year, the defense he won the Super Bowl with surrendered 173 rushing yards a game. Obviously, because of this, Manning gets the ball less but despite this he managed to lead the league in QB efficiency. Again, such factors are very key in comparing two players like this. It's much easier to compare, say, Carson Palmer to Manning. Like Peyton, Carson has no defense in Cincy and is forced to score more because his defense surrenders over 20 PPG. All that said, I firmly believe that if Tom Brady's defense stunk, he'd be able to lead his team to 28 PPG and give his team a chance. Obviously, come playoff time he'd get crushed because in the playoffs a defense is vital, but that wouldn't take anything away from Brady.

Like all QB comparisons, this entire thing is totally subjective and can't be "proven" either way. The general consensus now is Manning is the best because he overcame the one obstacle he needed to overcome: Winning a championship. All he had to do was win one. Now, he's cementing his legacy, and when he retires he'll likely own all the major passing titles, QB win percentage, and QB efficiency ratings.

Yet, despite all that, there will still be people that call him a "loser" and hate him. It's just how it is.