Buffalo Bills: Where Does Ryan Fitzpatrick Rank Among NFL Qbs?

Though the Buffalo Bills appear ready to take the step forward and reach the playoffs in 2012, there is a lot of work to do and football to play before January rolls around.

Win or lose, blame or praise will fall onto quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick's shoulders.

Ask Fitzpatrick, and he'll tell you the Bills are ready to reach the promise land this season.

Ask ESPN's Ron Jaworski, and he'll tell you there are 23 quarterbacks better than Fitzpatrick in the NFL.

Jaworski is in the process of ranking the top 30 quarterbacks going into the season. And he has Fitzpatrick rated at No. 24. If Jaworski is correct, and that Fitzpatrick really is in the bottom fourth of the league's elite, the Bills can pretty much give up on their playoff pursuit.

However, Fitzpatrick has out-dueled some of the game's elite quarterbacks, such as Michael Vick and Tom Brady. But Jaworski doesn't even have Fitzpatrick better than the Jets' Mark Sanchez. He at least has some justification for his rating, but come on Jaworski, get real.

Before rib injuries limited Fitzpatrick in the final nine games, in which Buffalo lost eight, Fitzpatrick had the Bills at 5-2 and playing good football. He was gutsy and clutch with fourth quarter comebacks against the Oakland Raiders and New England Patriots. But injuries kicked in and interceptions came out of his fingers.

He managed to throw for 3,832 yards and 24 touchdowns in 2011. He also threw 23 interceptions. Though Fitzpatrick can play like a top 10 quarterback at times, Jaworski was correct to put all phases of Fitzpatrick's game together and give him a lower ranking. But No. 24 was just too low.

Here are my top 30 quarterbacks heading into the 2012 NFL season.

Rank	Name	Team
1	Eli Manning	Giants
2	Tom Brady	Patriots
3	Aaron Rodgers	Packers
4	Drew Brees	Saints
5	Peyton Manning	Broncos
6	Matthew Stafford	Lions
7	Philip Rivers	Chargers
8	Tony Romo	Cowboys
9	Cam Newton	Panthers
10	Ben Roelithsberger	Steelers
11	Matt Schaub	Texans
12	Alex Smith	49ers
13	Matt Ryan	Falcons
14	Michael Vick	Eagles
15	Jay Cutler	Bears
16	Joe Flacco	Ravens
17	Andy Dalton	Bengals
18	Ryan Fitzpatrick	Bills
19	Matt Hasselbeck	Titans
20	Carson Palmer	Raiders
21	Mark Sanchez	Jets
22	Andrew Luck	Colts
23	Sam Bradford	Rams
24	Robert Griffin III	Redskins
25	Josh Freeman	Buccaneers
26	Matt Flynn	Seahawks
27	Tim Tebow	Jets
28	Matt Moore	Dolphins
29	Matt Cassel	Chiefs
30	Kevin Kolb	Cardinals

My list has Fitzpatrick six spots better than Jaworski's.

Don't agree with my list? Did I have somebody too high? Too low? Did I include or leave out somebody who should/shouldn't be there? Give me your list and where Fitzpatrick belongs in the comments below.