All-Time Super Bowl QBs: Where's Falcons' Matt Ryan?
The argument of "greatest of all time" NFL quarterbacks begins and ends with Tom Brady's supreme reign. However, the league boasts many other crazy talented quarterbacks that have shined on the biggest football stage: the Super Bowl.
NFL.com ranked the best 66 quarterbacks to ever start a Super Bowl and two Atlanta Falcons landed on the list. Matt Ryan is the highest-ranked Falcon at No. 29, followed by Chris Chandler at No. 45.
Ryan led the Falcons to an appearance (and faced Brady's New England Patriots) in Super Bowl LI. Ryan spent 14 seasons with Atlanta and holds several franchise records including passing yards, passing touchdowns, passer rating and wins. Ryan is ranked in the "fun to watch" category by NFL.com, one spot ahead of Los Angeles Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford.
"Stafford and Matt Ryan have had similar careers, although Ryan was more consistently among the top-10 quarterbacks in the league," NFL.com writes. "Stafford has a chance to pass Ryan if he can get healthy and put up a few more relevant campaigns."
Chandler is ranked in the "middle of the pack" category. Chandler led the Falcons to a 14–2 season in 1998 and an appearance in Super Bowl XXXIII. The other quarterbacks tiered with Chandler are Joe Flacco, Trent Dilfer, Chris Chandler, Billy Kilmer, Brad Johnson, Mark Rypien, Jeff Hostetler, Nick Foles, Neil O'Donnell, Colin Kaepernick, Jake Delhomme, Jared Goff, Doug Williams, Jalen Hurts, Jimmy Garoppolo, Jim McMahon, Joe Kapp, Stan Humphries and Vince Ferragamo.
After an unprecedented career, the recently-retired Brady takes the top spot on the list. Behind Brady is No. 2 Johnny Unitas, No. 3 Joe Montana, No. 4 Peyton Manning, and No. 5 Dan Marino. The ranking is based on accomplishment as it stands today.
Patrick Mahomes and Jalen Hurts, the two quarterbacks starting Super Bowl LVII, also make the list. Mahomes is at No. 10 and climbing while Hurts, who has only 34 career regular-season starts, lands at No. 57. It's not often Mahomes is an underdog. ... He and the Kansas City Chiefs will try to pull the upset over the Philadelphia Eagles (1.5-point favorites) in Glendale, Ariz. on Feb. 12 to become Super Bowl LVII Champions.
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