Falcons vs. Giants: Why Matt Ryan Needs Playoff Victory More Than Eli Manning

The Atlanta Falcons will battle the New York Giants on Sunday, and while it's hard to disagree that both teams desperately need a postseason win, Matt Ryan is the one player who needs it the most.

If the fourth-year quarterback wants to be considered elite, he has to take down the Giants to get his first postseason victory.  

New York barely squeaked into the playoffs, but won its division with a 9-7 record. Atlanta finished at a disappointing 10-6, but managed to do enough to secure a wild-card spot. 

Sunday afternoon should be an excellent game between these two teams, making for a great Wild Card Weekend. 

As leaders of the team, Ryan and Eli Manning must do what is right and carry their team to the next round of the playoffs. However, it's Ryan who is in dire need of a playoff victory, and here's why. 

Expectations 

The Atlanta Falcons won the NFC South last season with an impressive 13-3 record. This season, the Falcons were expected to remain contenders in the division, with a good shot at defending the title. 

Unfortunately, the New Orleans Saints essentially ran away with it, and the Falcons dropped games they should have won. 

Sure, both Ryan and Manning had their ups and downs this season, but Manning missed the playoffs last year. There was pressure on him to make it this season, but Ryan faced more heat after dominating so much the previous year and failing to live up to the hype of such an explosive offense. 

Atlanta was supposed to be a better team this year with the addition of Julio Jones, but things didn't go as planned. 

Since Ryan and the Falcons flopped, all can be forgotten with a playoff victory. 

Manning made the Pro Bowl and won his division, his season was better than Ryan's despite the worse record. 

Both will be ridiculed for a early postseason exit, but it's Ryan who will receive more backlash because his season failed to meet expectations. 

No Success 

Ryan has never won a playoff game. This will be his third attempt at it, and he's hoping the charm comes on and helps him get a victory. 

Manning hasn't won a playoff game since the Super Bowl in 2007. He's only been to the playoffs once since then. Of course he needs a win too, but since Ryan has never seen postseason glory, he needs it more.  

In his rookie season, Ryan lost to the Arizona Cardinals, who eventually went on to play in the Super Bowl. That could have easily been Atlanta playing for it all, but Ryan threw two interceptions and his bad mistakes allowed the Cardinals to take the lead and never look back. 

Then there was last season, which is still fresh in the minds of many Falcons fans. Atlanta was coming off its best season in years, had a first-round bye to rest up, but ended up getting blown out by the eventual Super Bowl champion Green Bay Packers. 

Having never tasted postseason success, this is the year Ryan has to overcome adversity and prove he can carry the Falcons to victory in high-pressure situations. 

Chances of Winning 

Both New York and Atlanta are pretty evenly matched, and the play of the quarterbacks will determine who wins the game.

They've both beaten the Eagles (although the Giants did lose to them once), and they both gave Green Bay a scare. Of course, the Giants went to the wire with the Packers, whereas the Falcons only frightened Green Bay for a half. 

Still, it's a positive to take away since the Packers have been so dominant this season. Atlanta knows it's capable of competing with any team in the league. 

It's up to Ryan, though, to make sure the Falcons actually walk away victorious. It's time for Ryan to take the Falcons to the next level, and it all starts with this playoff game. 

The chances of Atlanta winning are very strong, but it will only happen if Ryan has a stellar performance.