My inspiration for writing this piece comes from an article by Bob Kravitz at The Athletic. You can read the article (subs. required) & discover more about this trending NFL topic here.
I’ve always been a huge fan of Andrew Luck’s since he was drafted by the Colts in 2012. The Colts seamlessly went from having one franchise QB in Peyton Manning to another in Luck. Luck took the Colts to the playoffs in his very first year at the helm, finishing with a 11-5 record. He was remarkably consistent in subsequent seasons as well, earning 11-5 records consecutively. People talked about him in the same way they talk about Patrick Mahomes now, an elite talent who put the team on his back and made everything on the football field look like it was so easy. His career was obviously short-lived, but that shouldn’t impact his huge impact on the franchise. Here are a few reasons why I believe Andrew Luck deserves a spot in the Colts Ring of Honor.
By the numbers
This graphic illustrates the point quite well that Luck was simply an elite NFL player. The four-time Pro Bowler & 2018 Comeback Player of the Year award winner broke Peyton Manning’s single season passing yards mark of 4,700 yards by throwing for 4,761 yards in 2014. He ranked second & third respectively all-time in TD passes & passing yards thrown by any NFL player in their first six seasons in the league. His career was littered with fourth quarter comebacks and game winning drives, highlighted by his 6 such victories during the 2012 season. Overall, Luck led his Colts teams to 17 fourth quarter comebacks and 21 game winning drives! These numbers paint the picture that despite his career being short-lived, Luck played an integral role in not only the history of the Indianapolis Colts franchise, but in the history of the NFL.
Comeback king
Andrew Luck’s highlight reel features plenty of his fourth quarter comebacks & game-winning drives. His most infamous one occurred during the 2013 AFC Wild Card game against the Kansas City Chiefs. With his team facing a 38-10 deficit with 1:16 left in the third quarter, Luck rallied his troops together & led them to a 45-44 upset victory in the game’s final seconds! I remember watching this game on a lazy Saturday afternoon in January without much else to do. I was starting to get very sleepy at that point, and I remember seeing the uneven score of the game late in the 3rd quarter and asking myself the question, “why am I still watching this game?” Just as I was about to turn the TV off and take a nap, I instead witnessed the NFL’s second-largest postseason comeback victory in league history! My sleepy eyes could hardly believe what they saw.
Larger than life persona
Andrew Luck really became the face of the NFL after being drafted 1st overall in 2012. There is an entire highlight reel where he is described as being The NFL’s “Most Polite Athlete.” Shoot, the media has been wondering if he’ll come back to the game for the past four offseasons! It’s fitting that the Colts have failed to find a replacement for Luck since his retirement in 2019. What’s sad is that they’ve finally built the right team to win with Luck, but he’s no longer there. Patrick Mahomes has since become the face of the NFL, but do our best to not forget about the iconic figure that came before him.
The bottom line
I have a unique perspective on Andrew Luck’s career, watching from afar as a lifelong Falcons fan. I believe that he deserved better than the crappy offensive lines & bad defenses that the Colts franchise continually trotted out during his tenure, much in the way that Matt Ryan did for the Falcons. The difference is that Luck was a better player than Ryan in terms of willing his team to victory. Obviously Ryan has done it for far longer than Luck at this point, but rarely at that elite level. Matt Ryan will no doubt be inducted into the Falcons Ring of Honor shortly after his retirement, and I believe that Andrew Luck should ultimately receive similar treatment from the Indianapolis Colts franchise in terms of celebrating his iconic career in the big blue horseshoe.
The Sports Beacon 