As ESPN sees it, Indianapolis Colts QB Peyton Manning won’t be remembered as the greatest player at his position during the decade of the 2000s. But former Colts WR Marvin Harrison may be.

That's the verdict of ESPN.com’s all-decade team, which is being released this week and is doing exactly what it was meant to do — to start conversation during a time otherwise thin on quality NFL discussion topics.

The reason Manning didn’t make the team?

New England Patriots QB Tom Brady.

This, of course, has the blogosphere abuzz, so I’ll say what I’ve said since starting Indy Football Report in February, and that’s that if forced to choose in the Manning-Brady debate I’d choose Manning for two reasons — 1) I’ve covered Manning eight seasons and therefore have a more intimate appreciation for his game-in, game-out, season-in, season-out performance this decade than I do of Brady, and 2) that those who select Brady in the debate tend to place too much emphasis on Super Bowl championships. While Super Bowl titles are obviously important, they are just as obviously an unfair gauge by which to judge quarterbacks. Would anyone say Joe Theismann or Doug Williams or Trent Dilfer was a better quarterback than Dan Marino or Dan Fouts? Not likely, yet Theismann, Williams and Dilfer have rings while Marino and Fouts do not.

I’m not arguing Brady's greatness. Without question, he's one of the NFL's all-time greats. I just have always questioned why Manning is considered a lesser quarterback than Brady by some because of the Colts’ lack of postseason success. And while I don’t know that this is germane to the discussion, I’ve also been intrigued that for some reason the Patriots’ loss to the New York Giants in the Super Bowl following the 2007 season is never held against Brady the way the Colts’ postseason losses have been held against Manning. Had the Colts and Manning lost a Super Bowl following an unbeaten, 50-touchdown-pass season, Manning would have been called a choker and the game would have been used to provide evidence that he failed more often than not in the playoffs.

As for Harrison, he probably deserves the spot on the all-decade team along with Torry Holt, although I still believe the Hall of Fame vote for Harrison won’t be as much of a dead-solid lock as many now believe.