FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — If football were a pay-per-view sport, the seemingly annual battles between quarterbacks Tom Brady of the New England Patriots and Peyton Manning, now of the Denver Broncos, would set all-time records for cable TV sales.

While true pay-per-view events like boxing and professional wrestling barely ever live up to the hype, or the cost of the broadcast, the battles between these two future Hall of Fame quarterbacks are almost always worth the price of admission.

Brady vs. Manning XVI will take place Sunday evening at Gillette Stadium, and as is so often the case, the QB battle is the main storyline of a game that also happens to feature the two best teams in the AFC battling for potential postseason seeding.

After early-season turmoil, Brady’s Patriots (6-2) enter the rematch of last January’s AFC title game on a four-game winning streak. Over the past month, Brady threw 14 touchdown passes and no interceptions.

The Broncos (6-1) fly east having impressively navigated their way through a tough early schedule to once again have their Manning-led sights set on the No. 1 seed in the conference. In the past four games, Manning threw 14 touchdown passes and just two interceptions.

Both quarterbacks are on track to again be considered MVP candidates. Both teams are on track to compete for a berth in the Super Bowl.

And the long-standing argument of Brady vs. Manning continues to look like a debate without end.

It is no different than Bird vs. Magic, Russell vs. Chamberlain, Williams vs. DiMaggio.

“He’s a great player, and I think that you just know you’re going to get one of the best offenses in the league,” Brady said of another battle in which he will try to keep up with Manning’s high-powered attack. “What that means for me is our offense has to be at our best. You can’t think you’re going to go out and score 10 points and win the game, and I don’t think any of our games have ever really come down to that. It’s really an important week for our team.

“All of us on offense have to bring our best because we know we’re playing against one of the best offenses in the league. Peyton has been a phenomenal player — so consistent and durable for a long period of time. We’ve had a great rivalry, and this year is no different. I’d say it’s a great matchup.”

While Brady and a resurgent passing attack are riding a now-healthy tight end Rob Gronkowski to an average of 39.5 points a game over the last month, the real question is how the two defenses in this battle match up against the opposing offense.

Patriots coach Bill Belichick isn’t prone to ranking things, but he puts Manning atop the all-time list of challenges he has faced in his 40 years in the NFL.

“Peyton does a great job of getting the ball to the weakest point of the defense, whatever defense happens to be,” Belichick said. “He’s great. Obviously he’s a great quarterback — best quarterback I’ve coached against. He does a tremendous job. They have good players and they have a good system. I’d say that’s a common thread: good players and a good system and a good quarterback.

“Relative to the Montanas and the Marinos or Elways or whoever, I’m not taking anything away from any of those guys, but this guy is tough.”

Brady holds a 10-5 advantage over Manning in career battles. Brady and the Patriots earned a comeback, overtime win last November at Gillette Stadium, but Manning and the Broncos took the rematch in Denver for the AFC championship.

Denver is favored on the road, though the Patriots have a 13-game home winning streak and are as hot as any team in the game.

It is Brady vs. Manning XVI. It is Patriots vs. Broncos. And if history is any indication, it is must-see TV with playoff ramifications on the line.

“They’re a great team,” Brady said. “They went to the Super Bowl last year. They’ve made a lot of changes in the offseason. They’re off to a great start. They’ve got a great team. We’re going to have to be at our best. We’ve got a pretty good team, too. We’ll see how it shakes out when it really matters.”

NOTES: DL Alan Branch officially signed with the Patriots Wednesday. He is a veteran of seven NFL seasons with the Arizona Cardinals, Seattle Seahawks and Buffalo Bills. … Undrafted rookie LB Deontae Skinner was released. … DE Chandler Jones (hip) did not practice. … DL Dominique Easley (knee), DB Nate Ebner (finger) and WR Matthew Slater were limited in practice. … QB Tom Brady participated fully in practice despite a minor ankle injury.