Tom Brady to attend Peyton Manning's HOF induction

Tom Brady and Peyton Manning were rivals on the football field for most of their highly decorated NFL careers. As intense as their rivalry was, both players always had an unwavering admiration and respect for one another.

That’s why Brady is flying to Peyton’s HOF induction ceremony, according to the Tampa Bay Times’ Rick Stroud. The seven-time Super Bowl trophy winner is attending Manning’s induction into football immortality on Sunday, Aug. 8. The Bucs will have the day off from practice that day; so Brady will be making the trip from Tampa, Florida to Canton, Ohio.

Brady vs. Manning is undoubtedly one of sports greatest sports rivalries of all-time. There’s Magic Johnson vs. Larry Bird, Phil Mickelson vs. Tiger Woods, and Brady vs. Manning.

Brady and Manning faced off as conference rivals from 2001 to 2015, competing each year for the AFC title. Manning retired after winning Super Bowl 50, 24-10 over the Carolina Panthers. In the 2020-2021 season, Brady just won his seventh Super Bowl trophy in his first season with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The Bucs return their entire starting roster of 22 players to make another run at a Super Bowl in the 2021-2022 season.

It’ll be an early trip to the Hall of Fame for Brady. He’s a lock to slip on a gold jacket once he hangs up his cleats in Tampa Bay. He’ll join Manning in football immortality, it will just be a few years later.

Tampa Bay quarterbacks’ coach Clyde Christensen said that Brady and Manning have been close friends for quite some time. They would hang out in the off-season when both players were in their 30s. They would meet up in Chattanooga, Tennessee to play golf, throw the football, lift weights, and talk about football.

Both quarterbacks were known for their uncanny consistency in their NFL careers. Not only were both players consistent, but they were consistently great. That’s never easy in sports, especially in the National Football League.

Manning currently ranks third on the NFL’s all-time passing yardage list with 71,940 passing yards. Brady currently ranks second on the all-time passing yardage list with 79,204 yards. Tampa Bay’s 44 year old signal-caller is likely to become the NFL’s all-time leading passer in the 2021-2022 NFL season and surpass Drew Brees. Brees threw for 80,358 passing yards in his career; so it won’t take much for Brady to reach that milestone.

The 2021 Hall of Fame class includes Bucs and Broncos safety John Lynch, Steelers guard Alan Faneca, Lions wide receiver Calvin Johnson, Cowboys receiver Drew Pearson, Raiders/Packers defensive back Charles Woodson, and Steelers scout Bill Nunn.

A few years down the road, we’ll be watching Tom Brady’s Hall of Fame induction speech, and it’s a safe bet to say that Peyton Manning will be there for his ceremony, too.

(Photo by Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images for The Match)