Ben Roethlisberger is the best QB out of the 2004 NFL draft

Before I begin, I'd like to clarify that I am a female. Thanks and good luck! *** In determining which QB is the superior player, I will also be providing statistics including that of passer rating. However, Pro mentioned that Ben R. is a "better winner" than Phil Rivers, which is not at all specific regarding the actual skills or qualities he is talking about. Moreover, an important aspect and contention of mine in this debate will be evaluating the performance of the two Quarterbacks in particular instead of comparing the performance of their respective teams. In other words, just because the Steelers have found more playoff and Superbowl success than the Chargers has no bearing on the comparisons that can be made between the two QBs themselves, as quite obviously football is a team sport than no QB can win alone. Indeed it would be incredibly easy for me to demonstrate that the Steelers have had the superior team and staff between 2004 - 2010, so consideration as to the performance of these QBs individually must try to be discerned separately apart from their team's success. *** CONTENTION 1: STATISTICS 1A) Pro begins by pointing out that Ben has accumulated more passing yards and touchdowns than Phil in the 6 years that they've been playing. However, Ben has played in a total of 90 games to date, whereas Phil has only played in 76 games to date. Phil was actually the third-string QB on the Chargers for quite some time; it took years for him to earn the starting position. In other words, it's not surprising that Ben has 11 more TD passes considering he's played in 14 more games. In fact, if you look at the averages, Ben therefore has averaged 1.46 TD passes per game, whereas Phil averages 1.59. Phil averages more TD passes than Ben. 1B) Ben and Phil have the exact same completion percentage, meaning Ben has not proven to be superior in this regard. 1C) Pro again emphasizes playoff performance, noting that Ben has put up ridiculously higher numbers than Phil. This of course is very misleading considering the Chargers have played in significantly less playoff games than the Steelers! This is an example of using the respective teams of each QB to determine which QB is superior. I contend that due to playoff appearances (the disparity in number), there is a better way to determine if a QB is able to put up big numbers in crunch time -- See point 4B. 1D) Let's look at overall career statistics to date. Phil's QB rating is 96.3 in comparison to Ben's 92.1. Phil also averages over 231 yards per game compared to Ben's 222. 1E) Because the resolution is present-tense, it presumes we should look to this season in particular (while considering the others) in determining who *IS* the best QB and not necessarily who was in past seasons. So far, Phil has thrown for 2,649 pass yards compared to Ben's 754. While Ben did miss 4 games, we can look to averages to determine who's doing the better passing: Phil's averaging 331 YPG compared to Ben's 251. *** CONTENTION 2: WINNING Once again, note that a team with overall better players and coaches is going to win more games than a team with lesser quality players and coaches but a superior QB. If Peyton Manning or Tom Brady were traded to the Cleveland Browns today, would the Browns magically make the playoffs? Of course not. In fact they'd probably continue losing. Nevertheless, the 2006-2007 season is when Phil started as QB for the Chargers, so let's look at their stats from then on. 2006 - 07 Chargers: 14-2 Steelers: 8-8 2007 - 08 Chargers: 11-5 Steelers: 10-6 2008 - 09 Chargers: 8-8 Steelers: 12-4 2009 - 10 Chargers: 13-3 Steelers: 9-7 In other words, the Chargers have won 7 more games with Phil as starting QB than the Steelers have won with Ben as starting QB in the past four seasons. A major flaw with Pro's analysis in win percentage is that it gives Big Ben significantly more games to work with considering he played in 26 games his first two NFL seasons in comparison to Phil's 4. Also, Pro's numbers are wrong. Ben has a .705 career win percentage to Phil's .676. However again we have to look at the teammates and coaches that these players are working with, and the fact that Phil did not really get to play his first two seasons. If we use his averages from later seasons to estimate what his performance would have been his first two seasons, his numbers would actually excel past Ben's. In his first starting season after playing just 4 NFL games he took the Chargers to 14-2. This is admirable once again considering the fact that he played on a less impressive team than Ben. For instance, in 2007 Rivers helped the Chargers win their first playoff game since 1994 whereas the Steelers have been no strangers to post-season success. Note: Rivers defeated Ben and the Steelers in their first meeting. Also note: The Chargers' only other real star at this time was L. Tomlinson, a RB. This means a lot of emphasis was on the running game yet Rivers excelled with the passing game despite this. This is far more impressive than Ben who's set up to succeed with the likes of Santonio Holmes and Charlie Ward, etc. *** CONTENTION 3: PASSER RATING As I've already mentioned, Phil currently has a higher average passer rating than Ben (96.3 vs. 92.1). In fact, the 2007 season is the only season in which Ben had a higher passer rating since Phil started. In other words, this contention of Pro's is completely in my favor. *** CONTENTION 4: CON'S ARGUMENTS 4A) Considering Pro wants to put such a high emphasis on passer rating, it's important to note that Phil has the highest career passer rating of all time second only to Steve Young. 4B) Rivers has eleven 4th quarter comebacks, proving how crucial he can be in the clutch (including earning a 1 point win against the Giants with 30 seconds left in 09). In fact Rivers proved to be the comeback kid after being the first in history to win back-to-back games after trailing by 17 or more points. He held the league's highest 4th quarter quarterback rating. In other words, it doesn't have to be a playoff game for a player to step up. 4C) Rivers is known to be incredibly passionate. However, while Ben's reputation has struggled recently, the public isn't the only one losing faith in him. His team did not elect him to be their captain (which is VERY unusual for a QB!) this season, while Rivers was named captain for his fifth consecutive year. The amount of faith one's teammates has in the leadership abilities and qualities of their QB should not go overlooked. *** -- CONCLUSION THUS FAR -- * Phil averages more TDs per game * Phil and Ben have the same completion percentage * Phil averages more yards than Ben * Phil has a consistently higher QB rating and pass rating than Ben * Phil is impressive with an inferior team compared to the Steelers * Phil is the captain of his team * Phil is set to shatter Dan Marino's record for most yards in a season if he stays on current pace http://sports.yahoo.com... http://sports.yahoo.com... http://www.pro-football-reference.com... http://sports.yahoo.com...