The contract is worth big money and the Indianapolis Colts feel it’s well deserved but they could be wrong. Many experts are saying that Andrew Luck should have waited and signed a bigger deal but maybe he knew what I know– he’s not worth it, yet.
Luck is and always will be known as the guy that pushed Peyton Manning out of Indianapolis. To be fair, numbers-wise he has done pretty well for himself but to be fair he has played with Manning leftovers. Luck’s first two seasons in the NFL were average at best as he tossed 46 TDs, 27 INTs but his completion percentage was a meager 54 and 60%. What made him stand out was the Manning situation. All eyes were on the Golden Kid from Stanford and the Colts brass bet the house that he would win. They had no choice.
Luck played behind a solid defense and with veteran players on the offensive side of the ball to help mask some of his poor decision-making.
In 2014, it all came together stats-wise as he passed for 4761 yards, 40 TDs and 16 INTs but that completion percentage was still below average at 62%. Let me let you in on a little secret about the Colts.
They play in the worst division in the NFL.
When your schedule includes two games each against the Houston Texans, Jacksonville Jaguars and Tennessee Titans, who by the way were in rebuild mode how could you not post great numbers and your team go nearly undefeated in the division?
The AFC South alone should be an easy six wins. That 2014 season was the equivalent of the Golden State Warriors playing the Philadelphia 76ers 75 out of 82 games.
Luck was being put in elite status for inflated stats.
In 2015 Luck’s season came to a crashing end due to injury but before he went down he reverted to the Luck of old. Mistakes were plentiful as the Manning Colts were either retiring or moving on. He was forced to be a leader and the true face of the franchise and he struggled to the tune of 1881 yards, 15 TDs, 12 INTs, plus a completion percentage of 55% in seven games as the starter. How are these highest paid player in the NFL numbers?
Here is a thought. What if Robert Griffin and Luck traded teams?
Before you go all Skip Bayless on me look at the numbers and take away the health issues of Griffin. In Washington Griffin had no weapons, he was basically a one person show as the Redskins were also going through a rebuilding phase. But what if you placed Griffin on that Colts team with that type of veteran experience?
It’s obvious Griffin is the better passer as his percentage sits at 65, 60 and 69 in his three seasons. He is the better of the two in creating plays, just so happens that Luck has had a better team in a weaker division to play in.
Just a thought.
The market for a good starting QB will always be in high demand and you can’t blame the Colts for locking up a player they have invested their future in. 2016 will be the year we get to see if the money was well spent.