Peyton Manning: Bill Belichick will go down as greatest NFL coach ever

Peyton Manning has struggled to get the best of Bill Belichick throughout his career. When facing Belichick and Tom Brady, Manning is a combined 4-10 between the regular season and playoffs. Why has Manning had such a tough time? If you asked him, he’d tell you it’s because Belichick is the greatest NFL coach of all time.

“Coach Belichick is the best coach that I’ve ever competed against,” Manning told reporters on Wednesday, as noted by Patrick Saunders of The Denver Post. “I think it’s safe to say that he’ll go down as the greatest NFL coach of all time. The teams that he’s coach that I’ve competed against have always been well-coached, always been prepared and always played hard for 60 minutes.

“I played against him when he was a defensive coordinator with the Jets and then as the head coach in New England. Those things jump out, and to me that speaks to his coaching.”

Belichick is certainly going to be remembered as one of the best coaches in NFL history, but another Super Bowl ring would put him very close to the top of the pyramid. Many will say that Vince Lombardi can never be removed from his spot at the top. Chuck Knoll is the only NFL coach with four Super Bowl rings and Bill Walsh and Joe Gibbs are the only others with three. We also can’t forget about legends like Paul Brown.

On Sunday, Manning will be responsible for either cementing Belichick’s place in history or presenting him with another obstacle to overcome.