More Than a Passing Fancy as Kurt Warner, Peyton Manning Collide

The bus ride to last season's Pro Bowl gave Baltimore Ravens head coach John Harbaugh a fresh perspective of Peyton Manning and Kurt Warner. Off the field. On the field.

"They both sat beside my daughter, Alison, and treated her like a princess,"' Harbaugh recalled. "It was really impressive how they related to an 8-year-old. Just great. And then Peyton starts pumping me for information about how we run our defense. Kurt wanted to talk about chemistry on offense and how best to get it."

Manning, the I-know-what-your-weakness-is, I-know-what-my-film-study-showed, I-have-your-game quarterback. Warner, the I-see-what-you-are-trying-to-do, let's-see-what-happens, take-this-shot quarterback.

Manning the intellectual approach.

Warner the daring approach.

Manning the surgeon, the cold-blooded, precision style. Warner the push-it passer.

Manning the blue-blood, the prince from his three-fold, NFL quarterback family.

Warner the ex-grocery sacker.

Multiple MVP winners and Super Bowl MVPs have never met in an NFL game. We see that on Sunday night when Indianapolis plays at Arizona.

When Peyton Manning meets Kurt Warner.

A slice of Ali-Frazier. A nip of Koufax-Gibson.

Two accomplished quarterbacks. Two hot ones.

Manning is fresh from a dramatic victory on Monday night at Miami, where he passed for the winning touchdown on a whirlwind last-second drive that you missed if you blinked. And Warner just completed passes at a higher percentage in a game than anyone in NFL history -- 24 of 26 (92.3 percent) in beating Jacksonville.

Harbaugh is correct when he says we should savor every moment of Manning and Warner on the same field and realize this is a special slice of NFL history. These teams have not played since 2005, the Colts have not visited Arizona since 1990 and the only way we could see a repeat of this matchup this season is in Super Bowl XLIV.

"Those are two Hall of Fame quarterbacks," Harbaugh said. "It is a craft for those guys, not a job. The way the NFL goes, you had better take what you can get, appreciate the moment you have, because things don't always come back around. The next time we might see them together is in Canton when we see their busts."

Manning is 33. Warner 38. Both entered the league in 1998 and are in their 12th NFL season. Manning has played only for the Colts. Warner gained his first shot as a free agent with Green Bay in 1994 but was cut, spent 1995-1997 in the Arena Football League, 1998 in NFL Europe and then his NFL career stuck: St. Louis (1998-2003), the Giants (2004) and Arizona (2005-present).

"When you talk about these two guys," said an NFL general manager whose team has played against each quarterback in the past year, "you are talking great leadership ability and great knowledge of the game. Both are prototypical drop-back NFL quarterbacks: Neither one is going to take off and kill you running. They can be methodical to watch. Fans may like flash and dash, but these guys do less of that and more of just lining up and beating you.

"There are differences. Peyton comes from a royal quarterbacking pedigree and lineage. Kurt comes from sacking groceries. Peyton played at Tennessee, one of the most prestigious schools in the SEC. Warner comes from one of those directional Illinois schools and I'm not even sure which one it is."

Actually, a directional Iowa school. Northern Iowa.

No matter, NFL talent evaluators agree. Same leadership, same drive, same knowledge, champion quarterbacks.

Both have mastered the art of quick decision-making, critical to successful quarterbacking. Both have excelled in reading defenses and having command of his offense, including all intricacies.

Manning's career quarterback rating is 94.9. Warner's is 93.8.

The element to appreciate most in this matchup is the competitiveness. Sure, both quarterbacks face the opposing defense and not directly each other. But both have been around the game long enough to know that it boils down to Manning vs. Warner. That this is the show.

It is a unique spot where winning the matchup rivals winning the game. It is a prime instance where those concepts are, indeed, the same. That is the encompassing impact this duo can have on any game.

"Peyton has that system down; he can do it with his eyes closed," an NFL scout said. "When Peyton comes to the line and starts barking and signaling, if I was a linebacker, I would think he was reading my mind. He counters. You counter. He counters. You counter. He usually gets the last word."

Not this time.

Go with the ex-grocery sacker.

Despite Warner's already splendid legacy, this shot is too juicy, too energizing for him to let slip. He has the better receivers, he has the better defense and he has the home, dome crowd.

And Warner is made for these moments -- shoving aside the regal to make room for the runt.