“Tom Brady and Peyton Manning are linked together like Magic Johnson and Larry Bird”: Shannon Sharpe Equates The Greatest NFL Rivalry To The Greatest NBA Rivalry Between Lakers And Celtics Legends

Tom Brady

Tom Brady and Peyton Manning have gone through legendary battles in their time together, reminiscent of Magic Johnson vs. Larry Bird.

Peyton Manning was recently inducted into the NFL Hall of Fame, and his good friend and old rival Tom Brady was proudly in attendance, showing his support to an all-time great quarterback.

Brady and Peyton had endless battles in both the regular and post season. It is very similar to the way Magic and Bird went up against each other in 80s in the NBA world. Both players are on equal calibers as well, making the comparison even more apt.

Also Read: “I was heartbroken”: Lamar Jackson opens about getting COVID-19 again and not getting the vaccine

Shannon Sharpe Compares Tom Brady Vs. Peyton Manning To Larry Bird Vs. Magic Johnson

Brady and Manning went against each other a total of 17 times with Brady winning 11 of the matchups. Manning los the first six matchups to Brady before winning six of the last 11 which included two playoff victories in the AFC Conference Championship game.

Bird and Magic dominated the NBA scene during the 1980s. During that period, there were only two years where either Bird or Johnson weren’t winning the Finals. Additionally, the Celtic and Lakers went against each other thrice in the NBA finals with Magic Johnson and Los Angeles winning two of the series.

Head to head, Johnson holds a 22-15 lead over Larry Legend. You can see why it’s easy to compare the greatest quarterback rivalry in the NFL to the greatest player rivalry in the NBA.

What’s more is that both Brady and Manning and Bird and Johnson are great friends despite their storied battles on the field or court. It’s why Brady was present at Manning’s Hall of Fame induction after all.

That’s why Shannon Sharpe believes that it was no surprise that Brady showed up to the event as he believes that Manning and Brady will be forever linked the same way Bird and Johnson are.

Also Read: “Nothing Against Tom Brady, But I’m Not Eating Avocado Ice Cream”: Ben Roethlisberger Hilariously Admits He’ll Avoids The ‘TB12 Method’ When It Comes To His Diet

Post Edited By: Ashish Priyadarshi
Basketball Larry Bird Magic Johnson NBA NFL Peyton Manning Tom Brady

About the author

Ashish Priyadarshi

Ashish Priyadarshi is The SportsRush's content manager and editor. Ashish freelanced for 1 year in the NFL division before taking on an editorial role in the company. He then tacked on managing content while adding on a writing role in the NBA division. Ashish has been closely following the NFL and NBA since the 2012 season when the Patriots lost the Super Bowl and Derrick Rose was at the height of his powers. Since then, Ashish has focused on honing his knowledge for both leagues in, even writing crossover pieces. In his free time, Ashish is an avid basketball player, he loves to watch movies and TV shows, immersing himself in the cinematic world. Ashish studies computer science and data science at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and would love to mesh his love for sports with his technical skills.

Don’t miss these