Here We Go Again!

And so it begins, the world which once seemed dark and unforgiving begins to blossom with new possibilities from an aged presence which promises to bring renewed life into a previously stagnant stature.

What? You thought I was talking about Mother Nature initiating spring? No, that was a direct reference to Favre switching teams again. I mean c’mon, three franchises in 3 years, he was supposed to be the God-sent to all of them, and his retirement is constantly discussed yet we all know better than to think he will actually stop playing football. The reason I watch sports networks of any kinds is to know and learn more about sports. Perhaps some of you are laughing at my statement that seems exceptionally obvious, however, watch ESPN, or even NFL Network (albeit to a lesser degree) this offseason, all Brett Favre, all the time, doesn’t really matter what the specific idea is, just that we get some good ol’ fashioned drama. I did not turn on Desperate Housewives, I do not want drama, I want sports, sports that are specifically free of drama.

Each person has a certain ‘drama bank’ if you will, that they can pull from, the size of which is dependent on how much you have done in the league. For instance, Peyton Manning has a huge bank, uses very little. Brady, dates a supermodel, uses a fair amount of his drama bank, Favre, and I recognize this is the medias fault and not his (mostly) is in a massive Federal government style budget deficit in his off field drama bank.

All I want this offseason is to not here about Brett Favre, that is it. If I had a genie in a bottle, that would be wish number 1, no Brett Favre offseason drama, ever again. But, as with all things that are a part of the very fabric of the universe, this could not and will not happen, woe is….well, all true sports fans.

By: Matthew Walden & Aaron Tull

Peyton v.s. Tom and Super Bowl, and Super Bowl XLIV

One of the more famous debates among football circles is that over the best Quarterback in the league, or of all time. It is a timeless event for fans and professionals alike. Nothing gets our fan blooded hearts beating like arguing for our favorite players. We take pride in living vicariously through these discussion as if we were a tangible part of those players and teams that we have so invested yourself. This is one of my favorite things to do with friends, and one of the most famous debates over the last decade has been “Who is the best, Peyton Manning or Tom Brady?”

The arguments have been fierce and competitive, but Brady fans have always had one trump card that has been able to hush the Manning fans, and that is the three Super Bowl rings. My question is, does that all change if Peyton takes home his second on Sunday?
Peyton obviously has the statistical advantage. He has 50,000 passing yards to Brady’s 30,000. Peyton has 366 touchdown passes to Tom’s 219. Manning’s career passer rating wins by a margin of 95.2 to 93.3 (I do not believe passer rating is a good indication of quarterback quality; see my article Best Quarter Back Ever at http://fortruefootballfans.webs.com/.

However, Tom has three Super Bowl Victories and four appearances to Peyton’s one victory and one appearance. We all know that is the key stat for most of these conversations. It is the only reason Terry Bradshaw is even mentioned, and what keeps Dan Marino out of the argument.
So, does this close the discussion and serve to solidify Peyton as the winner? The answer is no… Peyton was already the winner.

We all respect Brady, but the truth is, it only took Brett Favre incredible numbers and one Super Bowl victory with a second appearance to be mentioned. Even though Tom has good numbers (including some amazing single season records), he just doesn’t touch Manning.

By: Matthew Walden