In his "Monday Morning Rush" column, Yahoo! sports' Michael Silver wrote after covering the Falcons-49ers game about his man crush on .
First Down
There was a lot of praise for Ryan in the column. Here's an excerpt: "I do foresee a day when he'll be one of those larger-than-life icons" -- and those larger than life icons he was referring to were Dan Marino, John Elway and Joe Montana.
Second Down
The praise is somewhat qualified, as Silver writes that if he were picking a quarterback to win one playoff game tomorrow, he would pick the following quarterbacks ahead of Ryan: Tom Brady, Peyton Manning, Ben Roethlisberger, Kurt Warner, Donovan McNabb, Carson Palmer, Eli Manning, Philip Rivers and Drew Brees. Maybe it has something to do with those quarterbacks having won a collective eight Super Bowls. The only one on the list who has not won a playoff game, like Ryan, is Palmer. (Incidentally, both went 11-5 in a season in which their team was not expected to do much of anything.)
Third Down
Here's the highest praise. Silver said if he were picking a quarterback to start a franchise, he would pick Ryan. Essentially, he explains his man crush by saying he loves the way Ryan does the boring things that make a quarterback successful: his work ethic and preparation.
And Out...
What do you think of Silver's points and of the season Ryan has had thus far? Do you agree with his assessments of choosing those other quarterbacks -- it's a pretty impressive list -- to start a playoff game over Ryan? And would you pick Ryan if you were starting a franchise?
I don't think the Falcons would disagree.
