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Former NFL linebacker Bart Scott admitted that it was more nerve wracking to face Peyton Manning as a quarterback than Tom Brady.
Scott made the surprising statement on his ESPN Radio show with Alan Hahn titled Bart & Hahn.
“I’d much rather go against Tom Brady every day of the week than go against Peyton Manning,” Scott said. “I believe that’s how everybody feels. In the hay day, never ever have I said ‘We’re playing the Patriots. I’m so afraid of Tom Brady.’”
As a player, Scott faced both Manning and Brady in the playoffs. Scott first faced Manning in the 2006 playoffs while he was on the Ravens. Baltimore was the No. 1 seed heading into the playoffs, and they lost to Manning’s Colts in the divisional round.
Then, as a Jet, Scott lost again to Manning and the Colts in the 2009 conference championship. In 2010, the Jets beat the Colts in the wildcard and then the Patriots in the divisional round.
So, what made his experiences against two of the most praised quarterbacks in history different? Their playing style and overall game plan, Scott argued.
“Peyton Manning gives you a total sense of different set of anxiety,” Scott said. “With Tom Brady, it was more about Bill Belichick, the entire team, the execution, like them having a game plan. But, Peyton Manning... literally ‘yellow’ meant something in the first quarter, it meant something totally different in the second quarter.”
Manning retired back in 2015 with two Super Bowl titles, a Super Bowl MVP award and five NFL MVP awards. Tom Brady will enter his 23rd NFL season this fall after he had a brief retirement earlier this year. He currently has seven Super Bowl titles (more than any NFL team), five Super Bowl MVP awards and three NFL MVP awards.
