Indianapolis Colts: 2016 Andrew Luck’s revenge season?
After the Indianapolis Colts signed future Hall of Fame wideout Andre Johnson and drafted deep threat Phillip Dorsett in the first round of the draft, franchise quarterback Andrew Luck was supposed to be the MVP of the 2015 season, but, instead, he appeared in just seven games and was awful when he was actually on the field.
Back in 2014, I wrote a piece about why Seattle Seahawks passer Russell Wilson is a superior player to Indianapolis Colts former No. 1 overall pick Andrew Luck, but last season’s results don’t make me feel any vindication. Wilson is a living legend, and that’s something more people should recognize after his brilliant 2015 season.
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But when it comes to Luck, I just feel terrible for him. I feel terrible that he has to play behind a poor offensive line (OK, let’s forget about RW3 for a moment and how much worse his line is). I feel terrible that he had to play through injury last season. And I feel terrible that he suffered a lacerated kidney that ended his season prematurely.
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Luck’s interceptions, woeful decision-making, and ghastly 74.9 QB Rating (the fourth-worst in the NFL last season, putting him below embattled former star Colin Kaepernick) finally showed fans around the league that the Stanford product isn’t complete yet. Many expected him to reach that “elite” precipice last season, glossing over the fact that he’s always been an interception-prone quarterback who isn’t as good of a decision-maker as people think.
Likely the beneficiary of pre-NFL expectations, Luck has all the physical tools you could ask for and had an understanding of the game sufficient enough to make him a legitimate star, but I wonder if many forgot just how difficult it is to be an elite quarterback.
Make no mistake, though, Luck is so much better than his 55.3% completion percentage and 6.4 yards per attempt last season. Regardless of how much those numbers were caused by injury or other extenuating circumstances, Luck’s 298 yards per game and 40 touchdowns in 2014 are distinct examples of his power to dominate games. His 16 interception that season? Those should have been viewed as a disclaimer to those who thought adding two wide receivers would help Luck make a huge jump.
Luck is about to earn a ridiculous amount of money, and any quarterback who has played at his level for multiple seasons (when injury-free) will command that type of capital as a 26-year-old with MVP potential.
In the first season of a new contract, I expect Luck to attack the NFL with a vengeance, because he knows what happened in 2015 was an injury-induced anomaly that won’t happen again. With T.Y. Hilton locked in like always, Donte Moncrief on the cusp of stardom, and Dorsett ready to contribute, the Colts are an offensive line away from realizing their potential on offense. They won’t be good enough to earn a “Greatest Horseshoe on Turf” moniker, but the Colts offense should be elite again.
2016 seems like the perfect revenge season for Luck, and he will be exacting vengeance on the bad luck and decision-making issues that plagued him last season. With an offseason to reflect and plenty of time to work with the players around him, Luck, who undoubtedly has the capacity to improve mentally, has it all in him to have the best season of his career, though, again, Ryan Grigson and the Colts will probably have to supply the requisite offensive line help.
Even when the Colts line struggled in 2014, Luck was still one of the league’s most prolific passers, and Frank Gore‘s understated workman-like displays in the backfield will only serve to boost Indianapolis’s passing game. Luck’s deep ball should be cooking again, but the key will be consistency, which will have to stem from his own work this offseason and improvements from the offensive line.
Luck is too good not to bounce back to his 2014 form, but that won’t be enough for him, the Colts, or observers around the league. We all want to see him do even better than he did in 2014, and I’d say that’s the goal in this revenge season.
He’s not going to suddenly start playing like a Tom Brady or Aaron Rodgers next season, but maybe he can put together a season like the one Carson Palmer, Andy Dalton, and Russell Wilson had in 2015. Luck might not be the MVP in 2016, but I like his chances at becoming a candidate.
Remember, the QBs who took the next step last season benefited from minor tweaks around them (better line play, breakouts from pass-catchers like Tyler Eifert and John Brown), and they combined those boosts with the strides they made as passers to have excellent seasons.
All the ingredients are there for Luck to do the same, and I’m sure he’s as motivated as anyone to prove that he is indeed as good as the pre-2015 hype indicated.
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Outside forces, such as injuries and supporting cast play, will need to go his way, but we can do our best to isolate his performances regardless and ascertain just how many strides he’s made.