There are good guys, and there are bad guys.
Ryan Fitzpatrick: good guy.
Ladies, if the Harvard graduate with the flowing beard hadn't already won your hearts, we present this little gem: Unlike most of his on-field peers, Fitzpatrick refuses to remove his wedding ring during games.
"I haven't seen a reason to take it off, I guess," Fitzpatrick told The New York Times. "It stands for something. It's not like I'm trying to throw a message in anybody's face. It's just a personal thing between me and my wife. It's important for me not to take it off."
Besides, Fitzy's right-handed, so the ring hasn't interfered with any of the 14 touchdown passes he's tossed during Buffalo's sizzling 5-2 start.
He's in the minority on this one. Take, for instance, the words of Bucs defensive lineman Brian Price, who says his wife understands why he takes his ring off.
"She knows I'm her king, and she's my queen, so she doesn't care," said Price. "When I'm out there, I'm not married and I don't have family. Off the field, I'm all hers. But on the field, I'm a monster. And I don't want my queen to be associated with a monster."
A different narrative, to be sure, but Fitzpatrick's in the business of running from monsters, not turning into one.
His platinum ring, with his wedding date inscribed inside, brings "The Amish Rifle" feelings of joy, no doubt.
Still, Fitzpatrick and his Bills teammates eye a second ring. One that has remained an elusive prize in Buffalo -- for richer and poorer, in sickness and in health -- since the beginning of time.
