Roddy White stands up for Matt Ryan in comparison to Andy Dalton

Sept. 15 (UPI) -- Former Atlanta Falcons wide receiver Roddy White wants Colin Cowherd to apologize for comparing Matt Ryan to Andy Dalton.

White said as much Friday on Twitter.

"I got beef with @ColinCowherd," White tweeted. "U said on national TV with a straight face @M_Ryan02 and Andy Dalton is the same player. U need to apologize."

In August, Cowherd called Ryan a "better version of Andy Dalton."

The tweet came a day after the Houston Texans sent the Bengals to 0-2 with a 13-9 victory Thursday at Paul Brown Stadium.

Dalton completed 20-of-35 passes for 224 yards. He didn't throw a touchdown or an interception. Dalton is a three-time Pro Bowl selection but has struggled this season. Through two games he has completed a career-worst 54.5 percent of his passes, hasn't thrown a touchdown pass and has four interceptions. He owns a 47.2 quarterback rating.

Ryan threw for 321 yards and a score, while posting a 116.1 passer rating, in the Falcons' Week 1 win against the Chicago Bears.

Dalton hasn't thrown for multiple touchdowns in a game since Week 14 of last season. Ryan was the 2016 NFL MVP.

Through his first five NFL seasons, Dalton completed 62.3 percent of his passes for 18,008 yards, 124 touchdowns and 73 interceptions. He owned a 50-26-1 record as a starter. Ryan completed 62.7 percent of his throws for 18,957 yards, 127 scores and 60 interceptions. He posted a 56-22 record as a starter.

Dalton, 29, was a second round pick in the 2011 NFL Draft while Ryan, 32, was the No. 1 overall pick in the 2008 NFL Draft.

Ryan and White were teammates from 2008 through 2015. White never made a Pro Bowl before Ryan's arrival. After 2008, he was named to the Pro Bowl four times and was a first-team All-Pro pick in 2010.

"Matt Ryan is a top 5 qb and Andy Dalton is 20-30 range, where ever u want to put him. Unbelievable u would say that just looking at numbers," White tweeted regarding Cowherd.

Ryan and the Falcons face Aaron Rodgers and the Green Bay Packers at 8:30 p.m. Sunday at Mercedes-Benz Stadium.