Is Matt Ryan the 17th Best Player in the NFL?

Finally. After getting shunned last year, Matt Ryan has shown up on the NFL Network’s Top 100 Players list. He came in the top 20 which seems pretty good considering he wasn’t even on the list last year. The question is, though, is he really the 17^th-best player in the league in 2012?

Jan 13, 2013; Atlanta, GA, USA; Atlanta Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan (2) celebrates as he leaves the field after defeating the Seattle Seahawks 30-28 in the NFC divisional playoff game at the Georgia Dome. Mandatory Credit: Daniel Shirey-USA TODAY Sports

To me, Matt Ryan should be slightly higher but at least they put him in the top 20. He should be somewhere between 10 and 15, but 17 isn’t too shabby. Heck, I am just glad they got it right and made sure to put him high (or low) on the list. Here is the link to the video of Matt Ryan on the Atlanta Falcons website. By the way, Matt Ryan has a potty mouth, and I think that is awesome.

The Top 100 list has been, let’s say, iffy the past couple years. Shunning Matty Ice last year was pretty laughable, but I think shunning Jimmy Graham this year is equally laughable. To top it all off, not many players have openly said they voted on the list. To put sprinkles on that, most players will tell you they don’t know any players that voted on the list. So who is voting on the list, and why are they leaving off some of these really good, definitely top 100 players? The answer to that question probably lies somewhere in the NFL Network’s advertising and media relations departments more so than with their player relations or statistical analysis departments.

So what say you? Is Matt Ryan to high or too low? Is the NFL Network’s list even close to accurate or are they just another hype machine trying to spin things up in the offseason? Opinions are like elbows, everyone has them.