Indianapolis Colts: Organization Failing Andrew Luck

The Indianapolis Colts made sure Andrew Luck remains in town for the future, but are they squandering his talent keeping him with this team?

Indianapolis Colts quarterback Andrew Luck may have more raw talent than any quarterback in the NFL. He possesses an incredible football IQ, has prototypical size (6-4, 240 pounds), is a superior athlete, and has an accurate howitzer of a throwing arm.

Luck certainly came into the NFL as one of the most polished quarterback prospects in recent memory. And it seems absurd to look back now and even think that anyone considered Robert Griffin III a superior product.

One could argue, though, that Luck has fallen short of his true potential in Indianapolis. Sure, the reserved and bearded Stanford product has racked up 15,420 passing yards and 106 touchdowns in just over four seasons. However, he also holds a career passer rating of only 85.3.

For a point of reference, consider that Miami Dolphins quarterback Ryan Tannehill holds the same 85.3 career rating while playing over the same span as Luck. One is supposed to be a blue-chip, elite quarterback, while the other is a former receiver project with a high upside. Luck has shown some progress since entering the league, but he hasn’t quite blossomed like he might with a more complete team.

Luck isn’t perfect, of course. He has his bad games—like he did this past week against the Denver Broncos—and he has a strange penchant for forcing passes and taking unnecessary hits. Luck is usually one of the first to admit when he doesn’t play well.

“Not good enough to win, obviously,” Luck said of his performance against Denver, per Gregg Doyel of the Indianapolis Star. “Need to be sharper to beat a team like that.”

As Doyel points out in his article, Luck didn’t play well enough for the Colts to have a legitimate chance against the defending Super Bowl champions—even though Indianapolis’ maligned defense and suspect offensive line did.

What is troubling, though, is that Luck has almost always the one carrying this Colts team. Unfortunately for him, the Colts have never put enough pieces around Luck to carry him through a bad game. Yes, the Colts spent a first-round draft pick on an offensive lineman this year. This year was an aberration, however. Indianapolis has spent draft capital on wide receivers over the past four-plus years, largely ignoring the line and the defense.

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The Colts did try to address the running game by trading a first-round pick or Trent Richardson, but that turned out to be a disaster. Indianapolis’ leading rushers since Luck arrived have been Vick Ballard, Richardson, and an aged Frank Gore. The Colts simply haven’t had a strong rushing attack or an above-average defense since drafting Luck. If opposing teams can throw the quarterback off his game, the Colts have almost no chance of winning.

Unfortunately, the Indianapolis roster has become even less balanced over the past couple years under the guidance of general manager Ryan Grigson. Grigson continues to throw pass-catchers—like Phillip Dorsett, Donte Moncrief and briefly Andre Johnson—onto the roster while constructing patchwork defenses. The end result is a team that can rack up a shocking amount of passing—Luck had 385 yards and four touchdowns in a Week 1 loss to the Detroit Lions—but can’t do much else.

Luck inked a massive contract extension during the offseason that will keep him in Indianapolis through 2021. Unfortunately, that decision may seriously hurt Luck’s chances of ever being a champion, unless the Colts start using a different team-building strategy. Luck is currently rated second in the NFL among all quarterbacks by Pro Football Focus. Good for him. However, the 0-2 Colts are rated just 28th in pass blocking, 15th in rushing, and dead-last in overall defense and pass rush through Week 2.

This team is going to have a difficult enough time trying to catch the Houston Texans in the AFC South. Does anyone really believe it can compete with the likes of the Broncos, Pittsburgh Steelers, or New England Patriots if Indianapolis does make it to the playoffs?

The reality is that the Colts are asking Luck to put an awful lot on his own shoulders. Perhaps this is why he forces so many passes, makes so many questionable decisions, and willing takes such a beating on the field. Maybe Luck simply knows that he has to carry this team if it’s ever going to be truly successful.

This is a situation similar to the ones in which Peyton Manning found himself for so many years in Indianapolis. Those Colts teams were good enough to control a weak division, but rarely produced quality playoff runs. Sadly, Indianapolis seems to be following a similar strategy with Luck. Manning didn’t finally get the chance to play in a Super Bowl until his ninth pro season. At that rate, Luck won’t get an opportunity until the 2020 season. If the team doesn’t significantly improve, though, that isn’t even realistic.

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Manning’s teams at least had Hall of Fame receivers, a couple of quality running backs and the pass-rush tandem of Dwight Freeney and Robert Mathis. The Colts right now have Luck—and not a whole lot else.

If Indianapolis doesn’t start striving to build a better overall team, Luck is going to have a hard time getting any better as a quarterback—and his legacy could quickly become one full of unanswered questions.

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