Pittsburgh Steelers vs Baltimore Ravens: Which NFL Team Has Better Quarterback? [VOTE]
The Pittsburgh Steelers and Baltimore Ravens represent one of the biggest and most fierce rivalries in the league today. The two NFL teams have made it to the Super Bowl five times in the 21st century with their incredible play.
The Steelers and Ravens have faced each other in the postseason four times, with the Steelers winning three of those contests. The Ravens did however eliminate the Steelers from the postseason last year. But, who currently has the better quarterback?
Ben Roethlisberger and Joe Flacco are widely regarded as the two best quarterbacks in the AFC North today. Andy Dalton has performed very well in the regular season, but playoff collapses have halted any elite discussion. The Cleveland Browns have Johnny Manziel . . . never mind.
Roethlisberger has a pretty clear advantage in regular season statistics. His 93.9 passer rating easily trumps Flacco's 84.8, and Roethlisberger has a higher completion percentage. Roethlisberger has passed for 4,000 yards in a single season four times, whereas Flacco hasn't accomplished that yet. By far the biggest disparity between these two is touchdown to interception ratio.
Roethlisberger has 251 career touchdowns and 131 interceptions. On the other hand, Flacco has 148 touchdowns to 90 interceptions. Roethlisberger also has an edge as a better mobile quarterback. Flacco has never passed for 30 touchdowns in a season. Roethlisberger has done that twice.
Steelers fans have watched Roethlisberger win two Super Bowls and make three Super Bowl appearances.
But, there is a flip side to this AFC North argument.
Flacco is no slouch, and his résumé speaks for itself. Unlike Roethlisberger, Flacco has won a Super Bowl MVP award as the single best player in the biggest game of the year. Roethlisberger may have the edge in regular season stats, but Flacco has a pretty clear advantage in the postseason. Flacco has an 88.6 postseason passer rating and an exceptional 25 touchdowns to just 10 interceptions. As for Roethlisberger, his playoff passer rating is an 83.3, and he has 21 touchdowns to 19 interceptions.
Roethlisberger led an incredible game-winning drive against the Arizona Cardinals in the 2009 Super Bowl, but his 22.6 passer rating against the Seattle Seahawks wasn't very impressive. Roethlisberger also threw a pick-six against the Green Bay Packers in that Super Bowl loss.
Flacco is also three years younger.
Both of these quarterbacks have proven to be great players in clutch situations and very effective outdoors when compared to others. Roethlisberger is a more consistent player who routinely puts up better statistics, but Flacco loves to save his best moments for January. Both quarterbacks have also benefited from playing on great defensive teams in their career.
The AFC North is routinely one of the best divisions in the league, and much of that is due to these two guys. Roethlisberger and Flacco are still young quarterbacks who haven't shown any signs of slowing down. In the end, it's up to you to decide which quarterback is better.