Please, Leave QB Wins in 2018
TAMPA BAY— Matt Ryan threw two touchdowns and hauled in his career’s first touchdown catch in Sunday’s 34-32 win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The win lifted Atlanta to a final record of 7-9.
The Falcons trailed Tampa Bay 17-0 with less than a minute remaining before halftime. Atlanta scored a quick touchdown to end the half, then scored on their first three possessions of the second half to take the lead. After back-to-back touchdowns by the Buccaneers, the Falcons held the ball for the final 5:10 of the game, winning on a last-second field goal.
After the game, head coach Dan Quinn said it was a “cool ass team win.” He didn’t say it was a great win for quarterback Matt Ryan, because he understands that football is a team sport. And since football is a team sport, there’s no reason why he, or anyone else, should tally Sunday’s game as a win for just Ryan. Atlanta’s six other wins and their nine losses shouldn’t be on his shoulders either.
Here’s why: quarterback wins aren’t a thing, and they should be left in 2018.
If you grab a Falcons’ 2018 stat sheet, you’ll see that Ryan passed for 4,924 yards, 35 touchdowns, and 7 interceptions. For comparison, that’s just 20 yards and three touchdowns less than his MVP season in 2016. The Falcons went 11-5 that season.
Ryan didn’t go it alone in 2016 any more than he did in 2018. The people that think he did probably think he blew Super Bowl 51.
I can’t stand to hear sports journalists and football experts say claim that a quarterback is worth a starting spot because of the win/loss record his team had in college or in the NFL.
This one really boils my blood: “Quarterback A is 5-6 versus Quarterback B.”
How is that a thing? Opposing NFL quarterbacks are never on the field at the same time during a game.
Going by that illogical logic, Drew Brees beat Ryan twice this season. Ryan threw for over 370 yards in both games and a combined seven touchdowns. He also never played a single defensive snap against Brees.
Quarterback records don’t make sense, and they shouldn’t exist. So, along with your vow to drink more water, workout and stay away from social media, stop giving validity to quarterback wins and losses in the new year.
