No defense would want to face prime Tom Brady or Peyton Manning, but an interesting question is which of the two a defense would fear more.
Former Pro Bowl linebacker Bart Scott revealed his choice on Thursday’s edition of ESPN Radio’s “Bart & Hahn.” Scott said he would rather face Brady, as Manning’s constant changes at the line of scrimmage give Scott “a different set of anxiety.”
“I’d much rather go against Tom Brady every day of the week than go against Peyton Manning. I believe that’s how everybody feels,” Scott said. “Peyton Manning gives you a different set of anxiety. With Tom Brady, it was more about Bill Belichick, the entire team, the execution, them having the game plan. Peyton Manning literally, ‘yellow’ meant something in the first quarter, it means something totally different in the second quarter. … You feel like you got to go take an SAT test.”
Manning’s audibles and on-the-fly changes were the stuff of legend during his playing career. Other teams tried to decode his cadences and hand signals, but few ever succeeded consistently. Based on Scott’s explanation, it’s easy to see why Manning’s efforts consistently worked so well.
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