Super Bowl XLIV: Peyton Manning's Path To The Top

Joe Montana might have Conan O'Brien hair in the above picture, but it was a windy day  day in Canton, Ohio when the greatest quarterback ever went into the Hall of Fame.

As Peyton Manning prepares for his second Super Bowl, the gap between him and Joe Montana has never been closer. Manning has a leg up on Montana in categories such as  durability, statistics, and commercials but when you think of NFL quarterbacks, it really does come down to Super Bowl wins.

Terry Bradshaw and Joe Montana are both 4-0.

Troy Aikman is 3-0.

Bart Starr won the first two.

Joe Namath made the prediction.

These legends are the cream of the Super Bowl QB crop.

Tom Brady was poised to join them—and maybe even surpass them—but that loss to the New York Giants stopped his legacy train in its tracks.

Ah, this is the power of the Super Bowl and the difference between 4-0 and 3-1.

Even winning one Super Bowl, unless you call it in a pool during the week leading up to the game, can be a mere blip on the radar of the biggest game in the sporting world.

Brad Johnson, Jeff Hostetler, Trent Dilfer, Eli Manning, and Mark Rypien are all 1-0 in the Super Bowl but that was their shining moment. 

Eli Manning has a chance to go back as he is still in the prime of his career.

Jim Plunkett is 2-0 and is one of the forgotten Super Bowl QB's unless you are in the Raiders Nation, where your whole sporting life from the owner on down, is spent in the past.

Legends like John Elway and Kurt Warner have losing records in the big game but their careers are far more complete than that of Dan Marino.

Marino is always mentioned as the guy that has the stats but lacks the ring. Even Brett Favre has the stats but it is fair to wonder why he only has the one ring.

Joe Theismann won a Super Bowl but is more remembered for the hit that ended his career.

There are also Hall of Famers like Johnny Unitas, Len Dawson, and Steve Young that are not a part of the top tier of NFL QB's simply because they only won one Super Bowl.

Well, Unitas is still revered for winning the greatest game ever played but that was before there was a Super Bowl.

There are also Hall of Fame QB's like Fran Tarkenton and Jim Kelly who never won the big game.

And that brings me back to Peyton Manning as he is on the path to becoming the best QB ever.

He has taken a shade under 97 percent of the Colts' snaps since he was drafted No. 1 overall. In the ultra fast game the current NFL, the durability of this stature quarterback is amazing.

It is a testament to Manning's intelligence and preparation. He does not take big hits as he will either duck at a 300-pound lineman or throw the ball away to save himself.

That is why it is fair to project his statistics for the rest of his career: He will be in the Dan Marino/Brett Favre league very soon.

The one thing he lacks are the rings. 

Super Bowl XLIV is so important to Peyton Manning's legacy.

To earn his second Super Bowl win will move him into the next level of NFL QB's. He would tie Ben Roethlisberger and be one shy of Tom Brady in this era.

He would be halfway to the rare era of Montana and Bradshaw.

Peyton is the leader of a young Colts team that is primed for an epic run over the next five years, which might be the last five years of his career.

The Super Bowl makes quarterbacks who they are.

If Drew Brees wins Super Bowl XLIV then he will have a look at a new legacy. He will have beaten Peyton Manning and be on a team that is primed for an epic run.

As a fan who saw Michael Jordan go 6-0 in the NBA Finals, I am rooting for Peyton Manning. I know that I am watching the best quarterback ever already and with a win on Sunday, I won't have to argue as much about that point.

Nothing is more inspiring than greatness.

Just being around greatness is a palpable feeling that can make the sun shine through the cloudiest of days. And I don't mean that as a slam on Miami's current weather.

Super Bowl XLIV will have no losers.

If the Saints win, it will be such a great story. 

When the Colts win, we can all bask in the knowledge that we are seeing the greatest quarterback to ever take a snap.

I predict the Colts 34 -Saints 28.

Some will say that Peyton still needs to win a few more but he is on that path.

Get on board with me now so you can look like the smartest guy in the room in 2015 when everyone will be agreeing with us.