Indianapolis Colts: Andrew Luck must prove 2015 was a fluke
By Luke Sims
Indianapolis Colts quarterback Andrew Luck had a rough year in 2015 both on the field thanks in part to injuries. He must prove that 2015 was a fluke if he hopes to keep theColts in contention.
Before the 2015 season, Andrew Luck was enjoying one of the most dominant early careers of any quarterback in NFL history. He was leading the Indianapolis Colts to dominate the AFC South and push toward the playoffs once again.
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Yet the 2015 season saw Luck take a step backward before succumbing to injury for nine games and being replaced by 40-year old Matt Hasselbeck for most of that time.
In his seven games in the 2015 season, Luck managed just a 55.1 completion percentage (second worst in his career and worst since his rookie season), 268 yards per game (second worst in his career), 4.1 percentage of attempted passes becoming interceptions (worst in his career), and an abysmal 6.4 yards per attempt (his worst in his career). Chris Chase of For The Win highlights just how bad it was, even back in October of the 2015 season.
The fact of the matter is that 2015 was a year that Andrew Luck hopes he can forget and the rest of the NFL can forget as well. It can’t all be chalked up to injury.
Moving forward, Luck needs to show that 2015 was nothing more than a fluke. He needs to show that he can be the quarterback Indianapolis decided to build around four seasons ago and continue to justify that decision. He needs to prove that he has value to the Indianapolis Colts, and that will translate into dollars.
Colts owner Jim Irsay has said that Luck’s new deal will be “shocking” which Conor Orr at NFL.com speculates will put him in a similar compensation level as Drew Brees, Colin Kaepernick, Jay Cutler, Aaron Rodgers, and Joe Flacco. That kind of money is expected for a quality franchise quarterback in today’s NFL, but as can be demonstrated by the names listed, it can be something of a mixed bag.
Luck is professional and he expects himself to deliver each and every day for the Colts. He knows he has the physical tools to come back from a poor season and impress. As Luck goes, so go the Colts and he’ll have to rise above after facing difficulty in his latest season.
It isn’t so much about the money for Luck. It’s tough to imagine the Colts waiting to pay their franchise quarterback until after the 2016 season. It is expected that he will rebound and turn 2016 into a revenge season, as speculated by NFL Spin Zone’s Joe Soriano. He still has to prove it, however. He needs to prove that he’s worth that kind of money. It’s about his legacy and his ability to be a winner in the NFL.
If he doesn’t, he’ll face the same criticism that a player like Jay Cutler has faced with the Chicago Bears, making money off a handful of quality seasons but becoming less than stellar down the stretch. Luck doesn’t look like a Cutler-type
mistake
player for the Colts, but strange things happen in the NFL every day.
2016 started early for Luck. He knows that he has a target on his back after his 2015. He knows that teams no longer think he can’t be disrupted, can’t be flustered, and can’t be knocked out of a game. He knows that he needs to become even more dynamic and still deliver on the expected plays he’s built up as part of his repertoire over the last four seasons.
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As soon as that money ends up given to Luck, he’ll forever be compared to a group of highly-paid quarterbacks that haven’t all panned out but also include some of the best in the business. 2016 is a “prove it” year for Luck that could help shape his legacy. He needs to step up and show that 2015 was just a fluke and he’s well worth the money and well worth being considered among the best in the NFL.