Matt Ryan: Hall of Famer?

Too early to tell on Ryan. He’s (barring injury) gotta lotta ball to play. Today? No. Five more years? Could be.

Eli is a rock-solid slam dunk as a first-ballot. Two rings. The numbers. New York. A Manning.

I think Rivers is a lock, too. Assuming he doesn’t get a ring, he’s this era’s Marino.

 

You can argue Elway had a better career than Marino. But Marino was statistically better than Elway until Dan Reeves got fired and the dominant NFL quarterback of the 80's.

Rivers has never been considered the best NFL quarterback at any time in the 21st century. I think Manning, Brady, Rogers and Brees have all been better quarterbacks. So I don't think Rivers is a lock.

 

No, he isn't this era's Marino. Marino was better. As Lancey pointed out, there was no season in which Rivers was the best quarterback in the NFL. There were seasons you could say that about Marino.

You also have to be careful about getting too tied up in the numbers in the current game because it is so much more quarterback-friendly than it was even in the '80s. The biggest dividing line is 1978, with the Mel Blount rule and changes in pass blocking, but the rule changes to protect players also gave current quarterbacks a huge advantage. They can't be touched below the knees or above the shoulders. It is also a lot tougher for defensive backs with the rules protecting defenseless receivers.

Rivers could certainly get in, but he's not any era's Marino.

 

Being old enough to have covered the NFL in the '80s, I can report that the consensus opinion within the league at that time was Marino was the top quarterback with a significant gap between him and peoples' second choices, which were usually but not always Elway.

 

I figure there would be an execution at midfield for these hits on the wrong QB

 

Fair points on the Marino/Rivers thing. I gave an incomplete thought. My point was he’s going to be that guy in this era with huge stats and playoff teams with no ring.

Definitely not nearly good as Marino was.

 

If we are comparing eras, rivers as moon? He threw for a ton of yards; his teams made the playoffs a lot; they never got far on any consistent basis; led the league in passing categories both good and bad; made a lot of pro bowls, but never made all pro.

 

Moon is in his own category though, because it is the Pro Football Hall of Fame, not the NFL Hall of Fame, so his CFL accolades carry significant weight

 

Obviously there was a missing name in this post, Joe Montana. In the mid-80s, it was felt by many inside the league that despite his accomplishments and talent, injuries were going to cut his career short, which was why (it was thought) Walsh went out and got Young. In 1987, I saw the 49ers lose a playoff game (big upset) to the Vikings at Candlestick Park. Montana was loudly booed and there was a massive cheer when Young came in to replace him in the 4th quarter. A vivid lesson in how fans are basically shit.

 

You can't fault Rivers for the lack of success. Same as you can't fault Marino.
Rivers is a phenomenal QB.

He and Moon are good comparisons.

 

I think Rivers gets short shrift because he’s a whiny bitch on every play with a punchable face. Plus he’s got like a Duggar-lite family.

 

One thing about this discussion. I think we are underestimating the standards Hall voters have had for QBs. Only 25 of them from all of NFL history have been inducted. Twenty-two of those were from 1950 on, so that's about 3 per decade of history. Who were the top three of the Ryan-Rivers-Eli era. Easy. Brady, Peyton and Rodgers. After those no-brainers, it may be way harder for QBs from this time period to get in. And FWIW, Russell Wilson is likely ahead of the rest of that pack.