Q1. Who would you take as the all-time Colts quarterback Peyton Manning or Johnny Unitas?
It is obviously very hard to compare the two men by today's standards. John Unitas created the modern passing game we have today. Because of that, and because you are asking this today (July 2007), I'll still say Unitas is the Colts all-time QB. However, in about 5 years or so, Manning will surpass Unitas in that category. It's funny, but before Unitas' untimely death, he never had good things to say about the Indianapolis Colts... unless he was talking about Manning. Unitas loved watching him play, supposedly. Now that Manning has won a Super Bowl, he is creeping up there and will soon surpass Unitas as the #1 Colts QB of all time.
Q2. Where does Peyton Manning rank among the all-time NFL quarterbacks?
Give me your top 10.
All time? He is top ten, no doubt. Anyone who doesn't rank Manning in the top 10 is either a closet Patriots fan or an idiot (sometimes they are one in the same). Top ten:
1) John Unitas
2) John Elway
3) Peyton Manning
4) Otto Graham
5) Dan Marino
6) Fran Tarkenton
7) Brett Favre
8) Dan Fouts
9) Steve Young
10) Joe Montana
You'll notice I rank someone like Steve Young slightly better than Joe Montana. The rankings are based on what the player himself brings to the table. Montana won 4 titles because he played on tremendous teams stacked with talent. He also played in the non-salary cap era, where teams (like the 49ers) could buy a Super Bowl. Unitas is still #1 because despite not playing in over 45 years, he is still ranked 10th in all-time passing yards. This man played in a league where they penalized you for throwing, yet still dominated. Peyton Manning ranks third because he simply is better than guys 3-10. He's more accurate, scores more, and works more with less than the other guys did.
4 comments:
I don't really have a problem with Unitas at the top of your list, but how can anyone take your list seriously if you don't have Montana in the top 2 of your list?
To completely discredit Montana and the 49ers because they had a lot of talent is ridiculous.
Unitas' Colts were loaded with Hall of Fame players (Raymond Berry, Gino Marchetti, John Mackey, Lenny Moore) and other greats like Bubba Smith and Alan Ameche.
The Steelers of the 1970s were loaded with Hall of Fame talent, but Terry Bradshaw managed to throw only two more touchdowns and than interceptions during his career and finished with a paltry 70.9 career passer rating. So, obviously all that talent didn't help Bradshaw's numbers. In contrast, Montana has a 92.3 carrer passer rating and was MVP in three of four Super Bowls he played in. Looking back on those games, would they have won any of them without Montana?
The simple fact is that Montana was the greatest quarterback in an era of great quarterbacks (Fouts, Marino, Elway, Simms, Theismann, Moon, Kelly, Young).
And lest we forget, a 39 year-old Montana led a far less talented Kansas City Chiefs team to the AFC championship game in 1993. In 1994 he went on to defeat Young and the 49ers during their Super Bowl year and outdueled Elway in a classic Monday Night Football.
Any questions?
By the way, if Manning is number three on your list, then where is Tom Brady and his three Super Bowl rings (Montana is the only one your list who has more)? Tom Brady never had anyone like Edgerrin James or Marvin Harrison.
Jake Snore, said
Tom Brady didnt have a running back like Edge, but he had (and still has) a great defense. Peyton carried the Colts mostly by himself. Pats have more talent on their team than the Colts except Marvin. If the Colts Offensive Co-ordinator gets hit by a bus, they will be just fine because Manning does two jobs "QB + Offensive Co-ordinator". You cant say such things about Brady. Also lets not forget that the Pats won 3 SBs bcos of Vinateri, all of them were won by a 3 point differential thanx to Vinateri's foot.
Now top that with Manning's humble life versus Tom's flashy arrogance (BTW the Colts don't mock othr teams even when they comprehensively beat them, nor does Manning spike the ball or doesnt shake hands after a loss unlike Brady) and you will see why Manning is a much better QB, NFL player and person than Brady.
Having said that Brady may get some consideration to be 10th on this list.
WOW, someone is a hardcore Colts fan. You can't rank Manning ahead of Brady just because Brady is flashy and Manning is more humble. You have to look at their accomplishments. Brady has PROVEN that he is the best QB playing today...and to rank Manning #3 and Montana #10 is ludicrous and blatantly bias. Manning is a great passer with happy feet who can't scramble. The bigger the game got, the smaller Manning gets...while Montana would get better as the games got bigger. If anyone doesn't include Montana in at least the top 3 (his accomplishments have clearly earned him the best big game QB of all time) they simply don't like him personally.
Good list, in general, but Staubach has to be on any top 10 list. As for Manning vs. Unitas...no contest, Unitas was better...he did similar things, but back in the day when things were not spoon fed to qbs. These modern rules went a long way to creating the Mannings, the Bradys, the Brees...You can't hit the quarterback, and more important, you can't touch his receivers, either. And trust me, you aren't going to see anyone completing 70% of his passes if he has to deal with the style of defense they played back in the 70's and 80's. Unitas was a tough, hardnosed man...Manning was probably the softest man ever put in Canton. I'm a lifelong Colts fan...I know...
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