Flacco’s Precision Typical of Elite Quarterbacks

Sam Borden, author of this article, begins with facts surrounding the players of Super Bowl XLVII, but mostly focuses on Joe Flacco's ability to be viewed as an "elite" quarterback.  Borden purposefully states that "Neither of Joe Flacco’s two brothers was on the field in the Super Bowl on Sunday night" and he "was not part of any pregame controversies involving deer antler spray, and he did not turn this game into a much-publicized finale of his retirement tour. At this point, there is no such thing as Flacco-ing." Next, after establishing that Joe Flacco does not have any striking reasons for his Super Bowl success despite his desire, Borden raises the topic of Flacco's accomplishments throughout his professional football career compared to Peyton Manning: 'at 28, Flacco now has the same number of postseason wins (nine) and Super Bowl titles (one) as Peyton Manning." Borden reverts back into history and discussed Flacco's unpopularity during his previous seasons. Finally Borden returns to the present and discusses the achievements of Flacco during his current season, playoffs and Super Bowl. 

Borden uses an abundance of facts to support Flacco's accomplishments and Super Bowl win. However, Borden also uses ethos to establish Flacco's credibility with a quotation from John Harbaugh, the Raven's head coach. Overall, Borden uses ethos and logos to persuade the football fans to view Joe Flacco at the same caliber as some of the "elite" quarterbacks. 

Source: http://www.nytimes.com/2013/02/04/sports/football/super-bowl-joe-flaccos-precision-typical-of-elite-quarterbacks.html?hp&_r=0