Manning and Rivers, 10 years (well, almost) later

[SinePari]

Watching the Bengals-Chargers game with a friend, we started discussing the Chargers-Giants trade back in 2004 that brought Rivers to San Diego and Manning to New York. Now that we've had almost 10 years to watch both players, I ask 1) who has developed into the better QB and 2) who do you think ended up with the better trade (Chargers or Giants)?

I think in both cases the answer is Rivers / Chargers. Despite Eli having the edge in post-season wins and Super Bowl wins, he is the less complete (or maybe, consistent?) QB. A lot of Eli's successes have been the result of very good Giants' defenses (and some luck like the catch by Tyree). In addition, Rivers seems to make better decisions, fewer mistakes (despite his atrocious season laster year), and is in general more accurate. Add to that the fact that the Chargers were also able to get Shawn Merriman (via draft pick), who contributed to the Chargers greatly for at least a few years, and I think the Chargers won out in the trade.

Both are good QBs - so I'm not saying Eli is a bad QB by any means. However, if I had to choose E. Manning or Rivers to lead my team (knowing what I know now given 10 years of tape) I would choose Rivers.

Thoughts?

[KoolBreeze]

Yep, there is no doubt about it. Rivers is the better QB and the Chargers made out like bandits on that trade. As an added bonus, it ended up working out very well for the Broncos also because there is no way Peyton comes to Denver if Eli is in San Diego.