'Game on' for Tom Brady against Peyton Manning: The end is near
— -- Tom Brady makes no bones about how he rates himself against Peyton Manning.
Brady, in an email to an old friend made public as part of the federal Deflategate lawsuit, said the "final chapter" of his rivalry with Manning will be decided when Brady ultimately plays for seven or eight more years -- and Manning lasts only another two.
The candid email, dated Nov. 1, 2014 -- the Saturday before Brady's Patriots routed Manning's Broncos 43-21 in a Week 9 game in Foxborough, Massachusetts -- was one of two Brady messages published Wednesday by The Boston Globe.
The emails were submitted among documents in the NFL Players Association's suit over Brady's four-game suspension.
"Thanks popa," Brady wrote to childhood friend Kevin Brady during an email exchange discussing a Grantland story that illustrated a decline for Manning in comparing the two quarterbacks. "I've got another 7 or 8 years. He has 2. That's the final chapter. Game on."
Jay Flannelly, a blogger friend of Brady's nicknamed "Beav," went into much deeper detail about why Brady, who is 38, is superior to Manning, who is 39.
But Flannelly had the benefit of hindsight, calling the Broncos front-runners while writing Brady the day after the blowout win.
"Manning needs things to be perfect to succeed, weather, his system, etc.," Flannelly wrote. "You right about November --- HUGE"
Brady simply defers to Flannelly's analysis in his reply.
"We are some hard working grinders beav," Brady wrote. "That's what our team is all about. Our best is still ahead of us."
Flannelly also had complimented Brady's performance, saying the one thing he had noticed was how well he was moving: "foot work, scrambling, keeping plays alive--- clearly u worked hard on this."
"Also agree with your postgame presser assessment--- left points on the field -- should have put a hundred on that team...FGs into TDs changes that--finnish drives," Flannelly wrote, before taking a shot at the Broncos.
"Always helps when other team is DUMB--- LBer on Gronk on 2 yd line? VON MILLER!?" Flannelly added. "I really like this team and we have a long way to go but I want ring 4! Rest, rehab, reflect--- Lets get ready for this run.
"Proud of U. Beav. GO BLUE!!! GO PATS!!! GO TB!!! GO G!!!"
Related Stories
ABC News Live