Sports Illustrated projection

[*jason*]

(09-07-2015, 03:43 PM)Whatever Wrote: Wherever you rank Ben, number wise, he is still a second tier QB.  Teams with  a truly elite QB are almost guaranteed a playoff berth.  Tom Brady and Peyton Manning don't miss the playoffs, no matter what's going on around them.  The Steelers have missed the playoffs 3 of the last 6 years, more than demonstrating that Ben is simply not capable of putting a team on his back and carrying them.  He has always needed either an elite defense or a stacked supporting cast on offense for the Steelers to be a contender.  Saying they have a chance just because they have Ben isn't really rooted in fact.

Similarly, Flacco often plays well in the playoffs, but during the regular season, he is much like Dalton in that he is highly inconsistent.  I think that's a valid argument if we're talking who goes further in the playoffs, but not when predicting regular season records.

I think that has more to do with the divisions that these QBs play in.  Ben has had to contend with the Ravens every  year of his career.  Now the Bengals are right there as well.  Peyton Manning had zero competition in the AFC south, and Brady really hasn't either except for that little blip from the Jets for a year or two, and now.  The AFC west is pretty mediocre for Manning to this day.