Does the winner of the Patriots vs Manning game usually go further in the playoffs? We take a look

Are you interested in innane facts?

Well you've come to the right post. Here we are looking at every year in which Peyton Manning has faced the Patriots in the regular season (it's been in 11 of the past 13 years, wow).

Specifically, we're asking the question, does the winner of that regular season game usually go further into the post-season?

The answer, definitely yes.

Below, here is a list of every game that Manning and the Patriots have squared off against eachother since 2001 (the dawn of the Brady/Belichick era).


Now, let's look at each year. Did the victor end up going further in the post-season?

2001 - Patriots swept Manning in the regular season, back when the Colts and Patriots were in the same division. That Patriots team obviously went further in the post-season than Manning, they won the Super Bowl.

2002 - This was the only one of two years in the last 13 where the Patriots did not play Peyton Manning. The other one obviously being 2011 when Manning missed the entire year.

2003 - Patriots won 38-34 in the regular season. Patriots, again, won the Super Bowl so advanced further than Manning. They faced Manning in the AFC Championship that year, defeating him again 24-14.

2004 - The Patriots won the season opener against Manning, 27-24 and later met him in the divisional round, winning 20-3. The Patriots also won the Super Bowl that year.

2005 - The Patriots lost their first ever game against Manning under Belichick/Brady, 40-21. Both teams got just as far in the playoffs, however, losing in the divisional round.

2006 - The Patriots lose again to Manning in the regular season, 27-20. Manning goes farther in the post-season this time, defeating the Patriots in the AFC Championship and then winning his first and only Super Bowl against the Chicago Bears.

2007 - The Patriots beat Manning 24-20 in the regular season. They make it to the Super Bowl while Manning falls in the divisional round against the Chargers.

2008 - The Matt Cassell-led Patriots fall in Indianapolis 18-15. The Pats fail to make the playoffs that year for the first time since 2002, meanwhile Manning's Colts end up losing in the wild card round, again to the Chargers.

2009 - The famous fourth and 2 game. The Patriots lose this one in the final seconds, meanwhile, the Patriots lose in the wildcard round and the Colts make the Super Bowl.

2010 - The Patriots win this one with a late game James Sanders interception, 31-28. It is the last time the Pats see Manning as a Colt. In the playoffs, the Colts lose to the Jets in the wildcard round while the Patriots also lose to the Jets, but in the divisional round.

2011 - As stated before, Peyton Manning missed this entire year due to injury.

2012 - The Patriots beat Manning's Broncos 31-21 in the regular season, and did end up going farther in the post-season. Manning lost to the Baltimore Ravens in the divisional round, while the Pats ended up losing to that same team in the AFC Championship.

2013 - Who knows??

So far, the winner of the regular season game has indeed advanced further in the post-season. In the 10 seasons prior to this one where the two met in the regular season, the winner has had a deeper playoff run, 90% of the time. The only season that makes up that 10% is in 2005, when Manning beat the Patriots in the regular season but both teams got just as far in the playoffs.

So, why does this matter? Well, usually that head to head matchup might indicate which team was actually better that year. And if the winner goes further in the post-season 90% of the time, that would seem to back up that statement.

It also allows us to look at the times when the two teams have actually faced eachother once in the regular season, and then again in the playoffs. Such will be the case tomorrow.

In those post-season rematches, the winner of the regular season game has never lost. Of course, this only happened three times. In 2003 and 2004 the Patriots beat Manning in the regular season, and then later in the AFC Championship Game and Divisional Round respectively. In 2006, the Patriots lost to Manning in the regular season and then lost that famous AFC Championship game.

So, in a Manning-Patriot playoff rematch, the regular season victor is 3-0.

Certainly, the Broncos hope to buck that trend tomorrow. These facts are fun to look at, but the reality is that these are two completely different teams than we saw back then.

Still, history shouldn't be ignored, and the Patriots have it on their side, at least.