Downshift or exhaust brake?

I've never had a diesel, always gas. If I come up to a long downhill I have always downshifted and kept the speeds where I wanted them with only an occasional push on the brake pedal.

For those of you who have driven both, is a diesel with an exhaust brake that much better at controlling speed going down a grade?

Exhaust brakes produce more brake power at higher rpms so downshifting is also required and are far superior to a gas engine braking.
Ford/Ram/GM LDT today use the the VVT or VGT turbo technology for exhaust braking and has more braking performance than a actual exhaust brake after the turbo.
I had a Jacobs exhaust brake from Dodge added when I bought the truck when new in '03. This 5.9 HO was the new just out HPCR engine so it was in mar or april before Jacobs got their new exhaust brake ready and to all Dodge dealers. Soooo.....I had to use the truck with the NV5600 tranny without a EB for about 4 months till the Jacobs could be installed. Their was no engine braking power at redline rpm in any gear going down Wolf Creek Pass with a 11.5k lb trailer behind. Smoking truck and trailer brakes was the result.
Later we made the trip several times after the EB was installed. Kept rpms in the 2800-2900 range resulted in one brake stab at the hair pin on the west side. No more smoking brake issues.
I expected no engine braking 'cause I had the same thing with a '96 DRW 5.9 Cummins manual tranny 4.10 gears and a '01 Cummins 5.9 3.54 gears and 47re tranny. I used both truck before having a EB added......also little to no engine braking at any rpm with a big trailer behind.

I had several '70s/'80s 460/454 one ton DRW carbureted 454/460 with 4.10/4.56 gears gazz guzzlers in commercial service back then. IMO they had better engine braking performance than todays FI gas engines.