NFL Playoffs: Has Andrew Luck worked his way to ‘Elite’ status?
With the massive success for Andrew Luck throughout his first three seasons in the NFL, has he achieved ‘elite’ status going into Sunday’s AFC title game?
When Peyton Manning missed the 2011 season, then was released by the Colts, fans in Indianapolis had no idea what to expect for the near future. Would they be another team who’ll sign a veteran quarterback and go through the cycle of quarterback after quarterback in hopes to find the man to replace Peyton?
Enter former Stanford Cardinal Andrew Luck.
If there was anyone who was perfect to replace Peyton, it’s Luck. On Sunday, he steps into the hole that Peyton left in one of our generation’s best playoff rivalries: the New England Patriots vs. the Indianapolis Colts. However this time around, instead of the infamous Manning vs. Brady showdown we’ve come to know and love, it’ll be Luck vs. Brady and it’ll be Luck trying to deny Brady his sixth trip to the Super Bowl.
Luck, just 25-years-old, is like an improved version of Peyton, making him the perfect candidate to carry the torch of the great Colts quarterbacks in Johnny Unitas, Peyton and now Luck.
(For the record, whomever scouts quarterbacks for the Colts really, really deserves a raise and recognition.)
In just three years, Luck has yet to miss a start, throwing for over 4,000 yards in two of his first three seasons, pushing the Colts further and further into the playoffs year after year.
He’s shown the same, if not better, qualities than Peyton did in Indy during his young career so far: He’s a student of the game, he’s smart, an incredible leader, likes to stay in the pocket, has a gun of an arm and is able to perfectly hit his receivers in the window, in stride. He’s just more physically gifted than Peyton was, being a strong runner, able to take off when things break down.
Again, it’s the Colts just found an “improved” version.
He threw for a career-best 4,761 yards with a career-high 40 touchdowns for the Colts in 2014 and led the Colts to a big upset over Peyton and the Denver Broncos in the divisional round of the playoffs last Sunday.
Going into this Sunday’s AFC title game, Luck is the only quarterback of the four quarterbacks in the conference championships (Luck, Tom Brady, Aaron Rodgers, Russell Wilson) who doesn’t currently own a Super Bowl ring.
The question for Sunday is if “David can take down Goliath” again.
He wasn’t supposed to beat the Peyton and the Broncos, and he isn’t supposed to beat Brady and the Pats. He’s on the same path Joe Flacco was two years ago when he led Baltimore to the Super Bowl.
“Yeah, I think there is a competitive side in all of this,” Luck said. “Hey, the harder it is, they better. Let’s go try and make it happen.
“But to be in the AFC Championship Game, that’s great. But you’ve got to go out and win. Simple.”
There’s no question that Luck, along with Wilson, are the new faces of the NFL after Peyton and Brady call it a career.
But to reach the “elite” status that Peyton and Brady are on, Luck has to first get past the soon-to-be greatest quarterback of all-time in Brady.
Luck is 0-3 against New England including last year’s 43-22 loss in the divisional round where he threw two touchdowns and four interceptions. In those three games, Indy was outscored a combined 145-67, losing each game by just over 20 points with Luck tossing a combined six touchdowns and eight picks.
Luck and the Colts lost to New England on Sunday Night Football 42-20 on Week 11 this season with Luck going 23-for-39 for 303 yards with two touchdowns and one interception.
“He’s pretty good,” Patriots coach Bill Belichick said. “He was pretty good when he came in, and he’s even better now.
“He’s a great player. He does everything well. He’s got a lot of strengths, no weaknesses. He’s got a great future in front of him. He’s already produced a lot. He’s already done a lot in the time that he’s been in the league, and I’m sure by the time he gets done, he’ll pass a lot of guys by.”
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Luck has thrown for 12,957 yards in his first three years, the most of any quarterback in that time span and thrown for another 1,703 yards in his five career playoff games thus far, the most by any quarterback in their first five playoff games. He’s also led the Colts on 12 game-winning drives highlighted by the second-largest comeback in postseason history, leading the Colts all the way back from 28-points down to the Chiefs in the AFC Wild Card game last year, defeating Kansas City 45-44.
Luck can credit everyone else as much as he wants, but if he can lead the Colts past New England in the playoffs for just the second time in the Tom Brady era, we could be looking at the next elite NFL quarterback.
The question going into Sunday night’s AFC title game is: Can Luck bring luck to the Colts in Foxboro?
Just know that if we do in fact get a Seahawks/Colts Super Bowl, we’ll be watching the future of the league on the biggest stage of all. Watch carefully, because we are all witnessing something special this championship Sunday.