Zolak: More Pressure On Brady Than Manning Heading Into AFC Championship Game
BOSTON (CBS) -- With the AFC Championship on the horizon, Zolak & Bertrand discussed whether Tom Brady -- not Peyton Manning -- is actually the quarterback facing the most pressure on Sunday.
While Zolak sides with Brady in the Brady versus Manning debate, he still believes that Number 12 is under more pressure to perform this weekend than the aging Manning.
"Everybody thinks it's Manning because you're up against it with the end, right? Not a lot of time left. This could be Peyton's last game, Peyton's last season … all that stuff implies pressure," Zolak said.
Brady simply matters more to the Patriots offense than Manning does to the Broncos offense. With 39-year-old Manning at the helm, Denver's offense is centered on the run game. Brady, on the other hand, has been asked to run an offense with essentially no run game all season.
Zo thinks Brady's level of responsibility creates real pressure.
"I think all of the pressure lies on Tom Brady," Zo said. "Which team has a running game? Which team doesn't? Which team scraps the running game and can just chuck it 50, 60 times and say hey kid, go win it for us. We're putting it on you."
Zolak even believes the location of this year's Super Bowl presents added pressure for Brady.
"Where's this Super Bowl end up? Santa Clara. Where'd he go to high school? [Junipero Serra High School] right down the street," Zo said. "This is his home."
One more win sends Brady to his home, with all the pressure on his shoulders.