You have to choose any quarterback to lead your team to victory. Who do you choose?

Ok so over the last few weeks there has been an interesting theoretical question being asked on all the Boston Sports radio stations. If you had to win one game, on a neutral field, having equal defenses, which quarterback do you choose? Logically the “contestants” are always the same:

• Tom Brady

Career Achievements:

3 Super Bowls, 2 Super Bowl MVPs, 2 NFL MVPs, 7 Pro Bowls, 5 AFC Championships

2012-2012 Season Stats:

2408 yards, 65.3% Completion %, 16 TD, 3 Int., 100.6 QB Rating

• Eli Manning

Career Achievements:

2 Super Bowls, 2 Super Bowl MVPs, 2 Pro Bowls, 2 NFC Championships

2012-2012 Season Stats:

2426 yards, 61% Completion %, 12 TD, 9 Int., 85.5 QB Rating

• Peyton Manning

Career Achievements:

1 Super Bowl, 1 Super Bowl MVP, 4 NFL MVPs, 11 Pro Bowls, 2 AFC Championships

2012-2012 Season Stats:

2404 yards, 69.5% Completion %, 20 TD, 6 Int., 108.6 QB Rating

• Drew Brees  

Career Achievements:

1 Super Bowl, 1 Super Bowl MVP, 2 NFC MVPs, 6 Pro Bowls, 1 NFC Championship

2012-2012 Season Stats:

2310 yards, 59.7% Completion %, 20 TD, 8 Int., 93.0 QB Rating

• Aaron Rodgers

Career Achievements:

1 Super Bowl, 1 Super Bowl MVP, 1 NFL MVP, 2 Pro Bowls, 1 NFC Championship

2012-2012 Season Stats:

2383 yards, 67% Completion %, 25 TD, 5 Int., 107.4 QB Rating

• Ben Roethlisberger

Career Achievements:

2 Super Bowls, 2 Pro Bowls, 3 AFC Championships

2012-2012 Season Stats:

2203 yards, 67.1% Completion %, 16 TD, 4 Int., 101.1 QB Rating

Sorry, but guys like Matt Ryan, Michael Vick, Phillip Rivers and Tony Romo need to actually prove themselves when it counts (January and February) before they make it on to my ELITE QB list.

Ok to begin with I’m going to get rid of Ben Roethlisberger right away because both of his Super Bowls were won with superb defenses. Yes he has good numbers in 2012 but in his career as a whole he has been carried by awesome defenses to make up for his mistakes.

I think of Aaron Rodgers and Drew Brees as the same guy. Both have put up insane stats in the regular seasons throughout their careers and have had one magical playoff run. But both have also had multiple seasons where their team was favored to make it to the Super Bowl and they failed miserably. The 2011 Packers lost to the Giants after going 15-1 in the regular season and the 2010 Saints, who went 11-5, lost to the Seahawks (7-9 regular season record).  Don’t get me wrong, these two guys are most likely going to end up in Canton, OH after they’re done playing but in this generation, the QB generation, they are just not consistent enough when the game is on the line to qualify as a finalist.

That leaves me with the Manning Brothers and Tom Brady. When comparing the Manning Brothers you look at Peyton’s stats and Eli’s rings. When it is all said and done, Peyton will end up having some of the best statistics for any QB in history. He already ranks 3^rd in both TD passes and yards thrown and with the awesome production he’s having this year in Denver, it’s not unrealistic to think he could overtake Brett Favre in both categories in the near future. But with all the stats, MVPs and Pro Bowls, he only has 1 Super Bowl Ring. Peyton’s Colts teams in the 2000’s were perennial favorites to win it all and they won 7 AFC South division titles but only managed to win once. Eli on the other hand is the complete opposite as Peyton. Eli has struggled more in the regular season than any other QB on this list, but when the games is on the line, time and time again he has come through in the clutch. In terms of this debate, I would have to choose Eli over Peyton.

So in the finals, I have Brady and Eli. Based on past history it would seem that Eli would be the overwhelming choice since in a neutral setting Eli has beaten Brady twice (Super Bowls XLII and XLVI). Here are the combined stat lines for both Brady and Manning in each Super Bowl:

• Tom Brady: 56/89, 62.9% Comp. %, 542 yrds., 3 TD, 1 Int.
• Eli Manning: 49/74, 66.2% Comp. %, 551 yrds., 3 TD, 1 Int.

The stat lines are pretty much even with Eli having a slight edge in completion percentage and yards but if you then examine both defenses in each game it’s not even a question that the Giants had the better defense on both occasions. In last year’s Super Bowl, the Pats entered the game as the league’s worst defense giving up an average of 412 yards per game. The Giants defense on the other hand was in the middle of the pack in the NFL giving up 350 yards per game. 

You can call me a typical “homer” if you want but Brady has proven that whether in the regular season, playoffs or Super Bowl, he always plays well as an individual. His team may not have played well in these situations but as an individual I think Brady has outperformed Manning overall. This debate is based on the scenario that the playing field was completely even on all accounts and based on that, Brady has got to be the choice. This isn’t a knock on Eli at all in fact I have spent the last 3 hours contemplating my choice. Yes, Eli has played tremendous in big games recently, but Brady’s track record throughout his career brought me to this decision. If Eli continues to win playoff games and win Super Bowls then I will have no problem saying I was wrong. But until I see him carry his team to numerous victories like Brady has done the past few seasons my choice has to be Brady. Think about it, Brady brought his team to within minutes of a Super Bowl victory with one of the worst defenses the NFL had ever seen. Without a good defense there is no way Eli brings his team to either Super Bowl. I know this whole discussion is going to piss off a lot of people but the Giants had the better team, but the Patriots had/have the better quarterback and in a situation based on a single player, Brady wins.