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The debate to end all debates: Eli Manning, Big Ben, Philip Rivers….. who is the best?

By Louis Gorini

Feb 5, 2016; San Francisco, CA, USA; New York Giants quarterback Eli Manning during the Walter Payton man of the year press conference at Moscone Center in advance of Super Bowl 50 between the Carolina Panthers and the Denver Broncos. Mandatory Credit: Matthew Emmons-USA TODAY Sports
Feb 5, 2016; San Francisco, CA, USA; New York Giants quarterback Eli Manning during the Walter Payton man of the year press conference at Moscone Center in advance of Super Bowl 50 between the Carolina Panthers and the Denver Broncos. Mandatory Credit: Matthew Emmons-USA TODAY Sports /
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PHILIP RIVERS

Oct 19, 2014; San Diego, CA, USA; San Diego Chargers quarterback Philip Rivers (17) in the first quarter of the game against the Kansas City Chiefs at Qualcomm Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports

REGULAR SEASON STATS

POSTSEASON STATS

THE CASE FOR PHILIP RIVERS

Philip Rivers’ road to success is a tad different than the other quarterbacks in the 2004 draft. Rivers wasn’t thrown into the line of fire from day one because the Chargers had Drew Brees as their starting quarterback. In fact, it took 2 years for Rivers to become San Diego’s full time starting quarterback. In his first year as a starter, Rivers led the Chargers to a 14-2 regular season record and to a divisional round match up against the New England Patriots who they lost to in dramatic fashion. For those who don’t recall, Brady was picked off late in the 4th quarter by Chargers’ safety Marlon McCree. This would have sealed the win for San Diego. But instead, McCree tried to return the interception and he fumbled and lost possession back to New England giving them the chance to tie the game. A couple years later the Chargers were once again upset in the divisional round by the New York Jets. San Diego lost 17-14 but it was not because of the efforts of Rivers. Chargers’ kicker Nate Kaeding missed 3 field goals during the game which would have ultimately helped San Diego advance to the next round of the playoffs. Despite these shortcomings in the playoffs, Rivers constantly put his team in position to win. In 2008, Rivers led all NFL passers in touchdown passes with 34 and passer rating (105.5). Two years later, Rivers led the league in passing yards, throwing for a career high 4,710 yards, a total that he would later on surpass in 2015. What Philip Rivers has done so far in his career has been nothing short of amazing. Currently, he is ranked 11th all-time in touchdown passes with 281. Yes, Eli Manning has more touchdowns than Rivers. But when you take into the consideration that Manning has played 23 more games than Rivers and only has 13 more touchdowns than him, it really does put into perspective Rivers’ per game performance. Philip Rivers is also ranked in the top 10 all time for career passing rating with a 95.5 rating. The only players ahead of him are the usual suspects: Drew Brees, Tom Brady, Peyton Manning, Steve Young, Tony Romo, Russell Wilson, and Aaron Rodgers.

HOW HE COMPARES AGAINST THE OTHERS

  • CAREER STATS: Top 10 in career passer rating and top 12 in touchdown passes
  • 5 TIME PRO BOWLER
  • DURABLE: 160 consecutive games started
  • PASS HAPPY: Finished in the top 10 for passing yards in 8 seasons, most among the 3
  • OFFENSIVE JUGGERNAUT: Highest completion percentage, QB rating, and yards per game among the 3

CASE AGAINST PHILIP RIVERS

There are quarterbacks that look bad during wins and then there are quarterbacks that look good during losses. Unfortunately, for Philip Rivers he falls into the latter. Every time Rivers lines up behind center, he puts his team in position to come away with a victory. And for the first 3 quarters he keeps the Chargers right in the game. However, Rivers has shown a propensity to

Dec 20, 2015; San Diego, CA, USA; San Diego Chargers quarterback Philip Rivers (17) reacts on the sidelines during the game against the Miami Dolphins at Qualcomm Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports

either throw a costly interception or fumble the ball in the 4th quarter when the game is on the line. Like Roethlisberger, Rivers’ performance seems to regress during postseason play. His touchdown percentage decreases by over 1% while his interception percentage nearly increases by 1% which is the reasons for the 10% decline in his quarterback rating. Philip Rivers has been to the playoffs 5 years, and has a 4-5 record to show for his efforts. So even though his postseason numbers are nearly identical to Big Ben, Rivers fails in comparison to the one state that separate the two; game winning drives. Rivers only has 1 game winning drive in the playoffs while Roethlisberger has 4. It is this stat that often makes people wonder, does Rivers fold under the pressure in the big game?

HOW HE COMPARES AGAINST THE OTHERS

  • NO SUPER BOWL APPEARANCES
  • UNDER .500 PLAYOFF RECORD
  • POSTSEASON REGRESSION: His performance dips in the post season
  • CHOKE ARTIST?: Bad 4th quarter play and only 1 game winning drive in the playoffs
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