Monday Night Football presents an interesting matchup between two important, young quarterbacks looking to make a major impact in the National Football League. Both Andrew Luck and Cam Newton have a number of years under their belts, but the two 26-year old men are still considered “young” amongst the elite of play callers. When looking at the arc of their careers, it is interesting to see that both players are making quite the impact in different ways.
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Even though one draft class separates the two players, they were both thrust into the limelight as high expectations followed their college careers. Luck was given the heavy burden of following Peyton Manning as the leader of the Indianapolis Colts, while Newton was given the reigns to the Carolina Panthers – a looking to rebuild beyond Jake Delhomme.
It goes without saying that Luck got off to the better start. In his first three seasons he put together 11-5 campaigns each year. On the other hand, Newton has only one winning season under his belt; the 12-4 2013 season. The tide has changed in 2015 as Newton is enjoying a 6-0 run and Luck is struggling at just 1-4. Luck was even benched at one point in the season for veteran Matt Hasselbeck.
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This is a telling reversal of rolls from when both men entered the league. Newton’s penchant for making bad decisions on the field, which still haunts him from time to time, seems to have transferred over to Luck this year. When players are sorted by QB Rating, Luck’s 76.2 has him sitting in the 31st position; not far behind Newton’s 78.4. But Newton’s performance on the field has helped carry his team to victories, while Luck has struggled to come up big when the game was on the line.
Monday night is an opportunity for both players to show their growth when the football lights shine the brightest. The questions surrounding whether or not Newton has turned a corner or if Luck is regressing before our very eyes follows both players onto the field.
For Luck, a victory will immediately create the diatribe that he may be able to save the Colts career. The Panthers bring a highly rated defense onto the field. They’ve been highly disruptive to opponent’s passing games to this point and Luck will have to limit the struggles he’s shown seven games into the year.
Whether he is the reason or not, Newton will get a lot of the credit for the Panthers’ undefeated streak. Playing well on Monday cements that conversation and will surely add to his confidence going into the latter portion of the year. The Colts’ defense is struggling to make hold offenses in check and that can potentially set the stage for him to have a massive night.
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Cam Newton and Andrew Luck are amongst the best QBs to come into the league in recent years. Their matchup on Monday night isn’t centered on them; however it is a moment to watch the continued development of these two franchise quarterbacks.