Over the past decade, a highlight of the NFL regular season has always been Patriots vs. Colts, Brady vs. Manning. The two teams squared off again on Sunday, but one of those names was conspicuously absent.
Recovery from neck surgery has relegated Manning to the sidelines, rendering him an innocent bystander during Indy's nightmare 0-12 season. Brady chatted with his old rival prior to kickoff of the Patriots' 31-24 win at Gillette Stadium.
"He said he felt better. He's a tough guy. He's as tough as anybody," Brady said during his weekly radio spot on WEEI-AM. "Obviously, with him never missing a game up until to this point. Even going into training camp, he thought he was going to play. He's a hell of a player, man. He's a hell of a player."
Brady has been every bit Manning's equal during their Hall of Fame careers, but the Patriots' QB acknowledged he has tried to emulate Manning in some ways.
"Watching him over the years, I mean, he's someone that I've always watched and tried to learn from, and a lot of aspects of his game that he does better than anybody else," Brady said. "I would never count against a guy like that."
Brady will never give back a victory, but beating the Colts without their signature star couldn't have been as rewarding. Manning and Brady have attained that Magic Johnson and Larry Bird vibe -- one side isn't complete unless the other is prominently involved.
