Will Matt Ryan Get his Man Card Back this Weekend?

Matt Ryan might have gotten the playoff monkey off his back, but he hasn't gotten his man card back.

Let me start by prefacing that Matt Ryan is not Tony Romo. He doesn't provide us with the type of overwhelming comedy that comes from a Romo-esque fourth quarter meltdown. Ryan doesn't choke in the exhilarating nature as a classic Romo pick six or some butter fingers. But, Matty Ice has been more Matty Meltdown than anything over his five year career; now he has a chance to retrieve his man card.

No, I didn't forget about what happened last weekend and how Matt Ryan captured his first playoff victory with a last second drive. However, I also didn't forget that his inability to make plays allowed his defense to tire and the Seahawks to miraculously come back from 20 points down. Actually, if the the Seahawks hadn't botched that late first half drive or Marshawn Lynch didn't fumble the football in Falcons territory we'd probably be talking about Ryan being Romo Jr. It didn't happen, I get it, he still won and a win in the playoffs is taken at any cost. Yet at the same time, that performance doesn't exactly make the 49ers tremble nor does it turn the public opinion around on Ryan. He still is soft and still hasn't proved that he is a winner. And no, regular season wins don't count in my book.

Thanks to Ryan's win last Sunday, he has a chance to truly take the next step. The Niners are the real deal, but the Falcons are at home and most likely feeling confident. They are a extremely talented squad  and I think they match up well with San Francisco. Yet, that means nothing if they don't bring a killer mentality on Sunday. They don't need any motivation from haters or a pump up from their coaches, this team showed in the regular season that they are laden with talent and the Niners shouldn't scare them. But we've said this before and they haven't performed. And that really comes down to Ryan inadequacies.

Ryan has thrown 6 INTs and 6 TDs in the post season, while losing two fumbles and never posting a QB rating hasn't been higher than 73 before this go around; of course you also can't forget that he's 1-3. However, the 0-for wins and the ugly numbers are in the past. It's time for him to go retrieve his man card from the depths of the Charmin factory and win his first NFC Championship. But another dud of a game, unclutch as usual, and Ryan will officially be dubbed Tony Romo Jr.

I personally think Ryan's a good guy and good for the game so I hope he gets it done, but history isn't on his side.