Survivor season 35 power rankings after episode 12

#2. Ryan Ulrich

How quickly two idols and an extra vote being wiped from the game can turn the tide of battle. Ryan hasn’t been the primary focus of the post-merge tribal warfare decisions, although he has been working people over with his social game from behind the scenes. His level of game awareness is not strong enough to hold onto his idol after playing it unnecessarily, but he’s familiar with the power dynamics.

As such, he’s been taking a backseat to the action, making sure not to annoy others while finding a seam somewhere for him to work a vote. The fact that Devon laid it out to Ryan about why he was blindsided showed that even when the power dynamics shifted away from him, Ryan was still kept in the know and kept safe because of Devon.

He has connections that will keep him safe mostly because his presumed power in the game is fairly low. As Chrissy tries to take out Ben, it will likely be one of them falling first. Ryan’s tucked safely under the radar for now, and only an errant play such as a rock draw or another secret advantage will likely take him out.