Big QBs, big results: The NFL's final four quarterbacks by the numbers

Scheme and strategize all you like, but in the NFL, the truism remains: teams need a good quarterback to survive, and a great quarterback to thrive.

The conference championships will feature Tom Brady, Ben Roethlisberger, Aaron Rodgers, and Matt Ryan. That’s the three quarterbacks in the running for this season’s wide-open MVP, plus Roethlisberger, the Ringo in this scenario: saying he doesn’t quite fit overlooks his importance.

The trio of Brady, Roethlisberger and Peyton Manning has owned the AFC for the last decade and a half, with only Joe Flacco slipping in there once since 2003. The NFC has been more muddled, with Eli Manning and Russell Wilson (both of whom, it should be noted, still led their teams to the postseason this year) claiming a decent chunk of the postseason real estate.

Still, you can’t get a more clear-cut image of excellence than you have right here in the conference championships. Between them, these four quarterbacks have seven Super Bowl wins and another three championship appearances. Together, they will have appeared in 21 conference championships. And they’ve combined for 36 total playoff appearances, led by Brady’s 14.

Ryan, of course, is the runt of the litter from a career postseason perspective; he has appeared in only two conference championships, and has exactly zero Super Bowls on his resume. Wilson or Eli would have brought more historical cachet to the weekend, but from a 2016 perspective, Ryan reigns either first or first among equals.

Ryan’s 117.1 quarterback rating leads all four; Roethlisberger’s 95.4, still good enough for 11th in the NFL, brings up the rear. The four combined for 135 touchdowns against 29 interceptions, and while under center, their teams went a combined 42-18. (Yes, quarterback wins are a stat that’s misleading at best and deceptive at worst, but still: your chances of winning a game improve dramatically if one of these guys is your quarterback.)

How do you begin to break down these four? Rodgers has the most clutch, big-moment potential. Ryan has the most diverse weaponry. Brady has the most experience. Roethlisberger has the finest individual teammates. You don’t have to reach to concoct a scenario in which any of these four wins this weekend and again in Houston. We’re in for some very good football.

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Jay Busbee is a writer for Yahoo Sports and the author of EARNHARDT NATION, on sale now at Amazon or wherever books are sold. Contact him at jay.busbee@yahoo.com or find him on Twitter or on Facebook.