Where does Peyton rank?

Other than the postseason ...

 

You've just proved my point. You, a contemporary football follower, assume without question postseason record is the decisive factor in rating otherwise equivalent quarterbacks. Fifty years ago that wasn't true at all, people didn't use that reasoning. It's possible 50 years from now the standards will have changed back.

 

As I've explained before, Brady's career arc makes him a better (and much more fascinating) QB. It's not just the postseason. However, what exactly would you rate above postseason success as a tiebreaker in the scenario you suggest?

 

Sure he would have. Because 1) he would have been throwing fewer passes, and 2) defensive players in the 70s and 80s were by and large not as large. And not as fast.

 

I don't believe such ties need to be broken. If you started Brady in his prime (still going on) or Manning in his and they stayed healthy all year, you had a championship contender no matter what. Better than that you can't get.

 

Well, you're no fun.

 

Disagree, but an interesting, somewhat related question:

If Marino had two rings but otherwise his same career, where does he rank?

 

Im the conversation for No. 1.

 

I agree. But "Marino with two rings" is also almost exactly how I view Peyton.

 

Tied for fourth behind Brady, Montana and Bradshaw. Winners win.

 

I've never understood the rationale regarding Montana's perfect Super Bowl record. If he only played four seasons, then maybe it would be relevant. But seeing as he played 16 seasons, his season ended in failure 12 times. Brady, on the other hand, has played 15 full seasons, so his season has ended in failure 11 times. And of those failures, Brady's are more "impressive" because they include two Super Bowl appearances and more championship games. If the Patriots lost in the AFCCG in 2007 and 2011, would Brady suddenly be equal to Montana?

 

Well, there's also the Montana career Super Bowl stat of 11 TDs, 0 INTs and a 127.8 QB rating. And the 93-yard drive to show he could do it in the clutch, too.

Funny thing, though. His first SB victory contained the following stat line:

14-of-22, 157 yards, 1 TD.

Manning's last SB line was 13-of-23, 141 yards, 0 TDs. Really not that far apart. And he was called by some on this board the worst player on the field that day.

Although I still maintain Mike Remmers, Mike Tolbert, Jerrico Cotchery and Cam Newton were far worse, among others.