The Green Bay Packers play the Atlanta Falcons this week and everyone wants to compare Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers with Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan.
There’s good reason for such nonsense — they’re both young, they’ve both been called the next so-and-so, they’ve both enjoyed success early in their career, etc.
In fact, if you take a look at the stats, they’re pretty identical, too.
Take this season, for instance.
| Comp | Att | Pct | Yds | Avg | TD | Int | Rate | |
| Ryan | 357 | 571 | 62.5 | 3,705 | 6.5 | 28 | 9 | 91.0 |
| Rodgers | 312 | 475 | 65.7 | 3,922 | 8.3 | 28 | 11 | 101.2 |
Rodgers is two years older, but both quarterbacks have been full-time starters for three years. Rodgers, of course, sat behind some guy loser named Brett Favre for three years, while Ryan started immediately as a rookie.
Both quarterbacks have been durable — Rodgers has missed only one start (this season) since taking over and Ryan has missed only two (both in 2009).
Both Rodgers and Ryan have made the playoffs twice — Rodgers is 1-1 and Ryan is 0-1.
Their career stats are similar, as well.
| Comp | Att | Pct | Yds | Avg | TD | Int | Rate | |
| Ryan | 885 | 1,456 | 60.8 | 10,061 | 6.9 | 66 | 34 | 86.9 |
| Rodgers | 1,038 | 1,611 | 64.4 | 12,723 | 7.9 | 87 | 32 | 98.4 |
Okay, if you look closely, they’re not all that similar.
Let us count the ways Aaron Rodgers is the superior quarterback. As a favor to our friends in Atlanta, I won’t even get into the personality debate, because we all know who’d win that contest hands down.
1. Touchdown passes — Rodgers has thrown for 21 more touchdowns over the last three years. That’s seven more touchdowns per season.
2. Interception ratio — Yes, Rodgers has two fewer career interceptions than Ryan, but that doesn’t tell us anything. What does is touchdown-to-interception ratio. Rodgers throws 2.7 touchdowns for every interception he throws, while Ryan throws 1.9 touchdowns for every interception. How about attempts vs. interceptions? Rodgers throws a pick every 50.3 attempts, while Ryan throws one every 42.8 attempts.
3. Yards per pass — Rodgers is a full yard better, which speaks both to the nature of Atlanta’s dink and dunk offense and the fact Rodgers is one of the best downfield passers in the NFL.
4. Rushing — You don’t see the stats above, but Rodgers is by far the superior player outside the pocket. Rodgers has 926 career rushing yards (356 this season) and 13 touchdowns. Ryan has 275 (122) and two.
5. Clutch situations — Throw records and everything else out the window. Ask yourself, if you had one drive to save your life, who would you rather have behind center? I’ll take Aaron Rodgers, every time.
Haha, you must be kidding me. Aaron Rodgers more clutch? Matt Ryan has lead 6 4th Quarter comebacks several of which have been with less than 1 minute left in the game. Also, Ryan didn’t get the luxury of sitting 2 years before being thrown into the fire.
I have a feeling we’ll find out exactly who’s more clutch this Saturday. It should be a very close game.
Mr. Matty Ice played the NFC West, both AFC Ohio teams, and Carolina twice. How clutch do you have to be? That’s 8 no brainer wins for any team left in the playoffs except the two teams playing at Soldier field this Sunday. If you had to come from behind to win in the fourth Quarter against any of these teams then you are not clutch.
Aaron Rodgers doesn’t have the luxury of throwing checkdown after checkdown after checkdown and still winning games on the strength of the rest of the team. Some QBs are actually asked to do more than choose between their first read and a five yard dump off. Aaron Rodgers is actually required to read a defense and throw accurately down the field, while escaping near-constant pressure behind a porous O-line.
They are both very good, young QB’s any team without Brady or Manning would love to have. But like Monty pointed out, Rodgers has a better arm and better feet that Ryan, and you can’t teach those things. I’d pick Rodgers.
I am a packer fan. I am a rodgers fan. But for #5 I think to be fair you should have at least included performance late in games. I believe matty ice as they call him has 12 game winning drives in the 4th qrtr, how many does rodgers have? I know I know, he would have had 4 or 5 in ’07 had the defense not absolutely shit themselves at the end of games….but nonetheless. I don’t know that in your scenario for #5 that it is that cut and dry, for either guy.
Harry Doyle: Matt Ryan’s a convicted felon isn’t he Monty?
Monty: It doesn’t say anything about that here.
Harry Doyle: Yeah, well…he oughta be.
If 66ing with Michael Turner is a felony, then YES.
If it was Matty Ice up in Michael Turner’s Ghetto Booty it would be 97ing. Sick!
That’s why they call them the dirty birds. Matty Ice uses his middle finger to check Michael Turner’s oil.
A roilnlg stone is worth two in the bush, thanks to this article.
Matty Ice= Gayest nickname ever
Randy Johnson “the Big Unit” might be worse.
Can’t really blame Rodgers for those close losses when the defense folded.
Come back wins is a horse shit stat anyway. May as well have a stat for guys that played like shit all game then finally got it together in the 4th quarter to lead his team to victory.
There are so many variables in football that a good majority of these comparisons are useless. Let’s compare Brandon Jackson to Michael Turner while we’re at it. Then let’s compare each o-linemen, then let’s see who’s played best in each of the 3 quarters leading up to the 4th.
See where this is headed? Idiotville.
If MM would grow a pair & take a little out of belichick’s play book, SOME games wouldn’t have been as close as they were….
My fear is the sometimes porous O-line we can have. The running game resurgence is a direct result of offensive line strength. If I had Brady’s o-line, my old ass could be a running back!!! Lets hope the shitbirds o-line is the one with the most holes this week. (No pun intended!)
GO PACK GO!!!
No this is no joke Aaron is more clutch than Matt Ryan wake up it’s true. If you are calling Rodgers “required” to sit until Favre exited and made an ass out of himself a “luxury” you have got to be kidding me. I sure Aaron would have been happy to get right in there and play his rookie year. Your team better not get to comfortable because we are punching that ball in repeatedly this Saturday Falcoholic.
youuuu tell ’em skooter….. you tell ’em !!!!
Rodgers is better than Ryan in literally every possible way (besides height). He has a stronger arm, is more accurate, is better at reading a defense, has better pocket presence and footwork, is a better runner, and throws a tighter spiral. The stats for each player over their three starting years completely back up everything I just said. There is literally nothing that Matt Ryan does as a quarterback that is even on par with Aaron Rodgers’ ability to do the same thing. The fact that Ryan is in the Pro Bowl this year and Rodgers is not (or really that ANY of the three pro bowl QBs this year are and Rodgers is not) is downright laughable. There is literally no comparison between the two.
I’m a Colts fan, but IMO Rodgers is only better than matt Ryan, but he is the best qb in the game. Compare his playoff stats the last 2 years to Brady and Manning and his regular season stats and he is right on par with both of them.
Not to mention a way better scrambler than other elite qbs. You guys have a great one. It always helps at the most important position. I wish the Colts had a tenacious D like the Pack too.