Readers line up to tear apart my quarterback ratings

	Donovan McNabb's recent history of injuries caused him to drop to No. 12 in the rankings. Simon Bruty/SI
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I knew I could start a good argument. I just didn't know I could start 15 with one column.

Readers, readers. Here's my question after seeing your e-mails on Monday night: Did you read my column? Or did you only look at my ratings of the starting NFL quarterbacks and say, "He's nuts! Kitna ahead of McNabb! Schaub ahead of Vick! Vince Young ahead of Roethlisberger! Loco!''

Remember what I said: These are my ratings for 2007. Of course Jon Kitna's has a high rating; he's playing for the Lions and pass-game guru Mike Martz, and if he doesn't have a big year, he should pack up and go home to Washington and pick apples for a living. Of course I'm going to question Donovan McNabb's ability to play a full season, after missing 13 games over the last two seasons.

I won't take up any time making your cases. I'm going to let you do it. And I'll give you plenty of rope here.

STEELERS FANS WILL NOT SOON FORGIVE MY DISS OF BIG BEN. From Brandon Schwab of Pittsburgh: "You're a moron. Have you forgotten about The Accident? The accident that will forever be burned in every Steelers fan's memory? Yes, people everywhere remember that day and its significance. He was phenomenal his first two years; need I remind you he was the youngest QB ever to lead his team to and win the Super Bowl? Not Manning, not Brady, not Elway, not Favre, not Montana, not Young. Those guys obviously are so much better than Big Ben up to this point and probably always will be, but come on, don't let one horrible year after a life-threatening accident force you to call him 'inconsistent.' Don't forget, he's only going into his fourth year, and he was rock-solid his first two years.''

The fact is, for whatever reason, Roethlisberger has been inconsistent for much of the past two years. That's not something I invented. It is fact. As I wrote, his completion percentage has sagged 3.7 and 3 percent in the past two years, not risen. Maybe last year it was a result of the accident; what was 2005 all about? And though I still like Roethlisberger and his potential, my column was about the order in which I liked quarterbacks in 2007. And right now, until he proves he can put another good season on the board, Roethlisberger's a middle-of-the-pack quarterback to me.

YOU HAVE A POINT, BUT I STILL GIVE BREES THE EDGE. From Dan of Athens, Ohio: "Carson Palmer behind Drew Brees? By the numbers, Carson has a better yards-per-attempt, a higher completion percentage, and his +35 TD-INT differential is the only one close to Peyton Manning's. Palmer's injury was devastating and no one was counting on 16 games, much less a Pro Bowl season. Most importantly, Carson spent last year playing against the AFC's rigid defenses, while the charmed '06 Saints were beating up the minor circuit.''

You can make the exact same claim about Brees' injury, which was just as devastating as Palmer's knee injury -- and to his vital throwing shoulder. I put Brees ahead of Palmer for a simple reason -- Brees did more with less last year. The Saints got more help on offense and Palmer lost Chris Henry for at least half the season, so I think Brees will have a slightly better 2007 as well.