Brett Favre feels kinship with Manning: 'Peyton's the closest to me'

Brett Favre feels for Peyton Manning.

Are unprecedented passing numbers hollow without multiple Super Bowl rings adorning your fist? Do you really belong in the same sentence with Joe Montana, John Elway and Tom Brady? Does your legacy hang in the balance based on the outcome of one game?

Manning has been hearing some version of these questions all week during the hype-up to Super Bowl XLVIII.

Favre fielded similar queries on the back end of his 20-year NFL odyssey, which concluded in 2010.

'I kind of laugh at that really,' Favre told USA TODAY Sports. 'I heard the same thing in my career.

'Statistically speaking, if you're middle of the road and won a lot of Super Bowls, it does a lot for you. But not as much if you win (just) one (Super Bowl) and put up big numbers.'

Purely based on the stat sheet, no quarterbacks have been more prolific than Favre and Manning, who rank first and second, respectively, all time for passing touchdowns, yards, attempts and completions. Only Manning has more MVP awards - he'll likely receive his fifth Saturday night - than Favre's three.

But longevity is a double-edged sword. Both passers are merely 1-1 in their Super Bowl appearances. If the Denver Broncos lose Sunday to the Seattle Seahawks, Manning will endure his 12th career playoff defeat and assume sole ownership of a far less desirable mark he currently shares with Favre, who was 13-11 in his postseason career.

'I know how hard it is to compete for that long. Peyton's the closest to me in that respect. It's tough to be good year in and year out, and week in and week out for that matter. I think it's foolish to say his legacy will be affected at all.'

Favre also bridled at the fact that wins and losses go on quarterbacks' records and are so easily referenced in defining them.

Including playoffs, Manning is now associated with 178 NFL victories, second only to Favre's 199.

'I was fortunate to be part of a lot of winners, but it had nothing to do with me and everything to do with the team,' Favre said. 'It takes a team to win, and it takes a team to lose. Obviously, you have a hand in it - obviously Peyton's hand is a little bit bigger.'

Favre looks back on his own career - his lone Super Bowl win came with the 1996 Green Bay Packers - with 'no regrets whatsoever' and isn't bothered that, despite his numerous records, he's rarely included with Manning, Brady, Montana and few others when debate arises as to who the greatest quarterback in history is.

'I exceeded every dream possible. I never dreamed of having every passing statistic or winning three MVPs. I dreamed of being a New Orleans Saint or a Dallas Cowboy,' says Favre, a Mississippi native.

'I didn't do that, but I got to play against them and play for 20 years. It was way more than I ever dreamed of. If people don't mention me in the top tier, well, what matters is what I think and what players that played with me think.'

Favre will be sharing more of his thoughts Sunday on NFL Network's Super Bowl GameDay pre-game show, though he says he's still not ready to embrace a routine media gig.

'It's not a big deal, maybe an hour,' said Favre. 'I really like those (NFL Network) guys - Mooch (Steve Mariucci, Favre's former QB coach in Green Bay), Warren (Sapp), Deion (Sanders), Rich (Eisen).

'I really don't like to be in crowds much anymore, and thankfully they set up the satellite feed (to Favre's property in Mississippi).

'I don't see me being a week-to-week TV guy. But if that ever changes, it helps to stay somewhat active.'

And Favre knows doing the TV thing requires an opinion, so how about a Super Bowl prediction?

'I feel like most people,' he says, 'Denver's gonna be hard to beat. There's a question in my mind how many points they can actually score against the Seahawks, I just don't know if Seattle can score enough to support that defense.'

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Follow Nate Davis on Twitter @ByNateDavis

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