The Kind-Hearted Smart Aleck

To the surprise of many, Pro Bowl Indianapolis Colts starting quarterback Andrew Luck recently announced his retirement, at the young age of 29 (he'll be 30 in a week). Upon hearing this, Indianapolis Colts fans started booing him. Sports commentator Doug Gottlieb tweeted, "Retiring cause rehabbing is 'too hard' is the most millennial thing ever #AndrewLuck." For only being 29 years old, Andrew Luck has sustained a number of awful injuries. It seems as though his love for the game was lost through this grueling cycle of injury and rehab. Not only has this been grueling for him physically, but also mentally. I love football. I honestly wish I didn't at times, because these grown men constantly put themselves in harm's way and place their short- and long-term health on the line just for our entertainment. Sure, they make millions of dollars, but at the end of the day, is that worth memory loss at a young age, a shorter lifespan, and excruciating pain aft...

While it appeared that the sports media fell in love with Indianapolis Colts #1 draft pick Andrew Luck in 2012, I said they should settle down, pointed out the Colts played one of the easiest, if not the easiest schedule in all of football, and while Luck showed hope for a long and successful NFL career, his numbers were anything but spectacular; in fact, they were quite rookie-like (http://thekind-heartedsmartaleck.blogspot.com/2012/12/andrew-lucks-performance-has-been.html). I then noticed Luck's continuing progression as an NFL quarterback between his rookie and sophomore seasons, as well as between his 2nd and 3rd years in the league. Now, with the Colts at 3-4 and Andrew Luck struggling, the sports media has appeared to go the other extreme, wondering if Andrew Luck has regressed as a quarterback, if the league has caught up to him, and whether or not he's already reached his peak. Once again, I'm going to tell the sports media they need to calm down. Former Washingt...

ESPN is at it again with another awful article, this one written by Pat Yasinskas. It revolves around 2011 #1 draft pick Cam Newton - quarterback of the Carolina Panthers. In the article, Yasinskas writes the following gems: "...Yeah, I'll even step out on a limb and say he (Newton) has a better 2013 season than Wilson, Kaepernick, Luck and RG III. Why? Several reasons pop to mind, but let's start with this -- Newton has more all-around talent than any of those guys. Luck can pass nicely, but opposing defenses don't have to game plan for his running ability. Wilson, RG III and Kaepernick each have some throwing ability, but they aren't pure pocket passers, and their big 2012 seasons came largely because of their mobility. Newton is capable of more than any of those guys, because he's as mobile as RG III, Kaepernick and Wilson. At the same time, he's as good a pocket passer as Luck." and "But you can't overlook Newton and the Pa...

It comes as no surprise to me that New England Patriots starting quarterback Tom Brady will forego the chance of playing in the Pro Bowl this coming Sunday. He's been battered and bruised for most of the season, and coming off a disappointing loss to the Baltimore Ravens in the AFC Championship Game this past Sunday, I doubt he's in any mood to play anyway. What is surprising to me is who will be replacing Brady on the AFC Pro Bowl roster - Indianapolis Colts' rookie quarterback Andrew Luck. All year long, I've been quick to counter the ESPN talking heads whom were sparkly-eyed and drooling over Andrew Luck this season. Granted, the guy did help turn around the Indianapolis Colts this season, as they went from drafting him number one overall last year to reaching the playoffs this season. However, the Colts played one of the weakest schedules in all of football this year and Luck received too much of the credit for the turnaround, as quarterbacks often times do. While...

I've already gone into detail about my belief that the Indianapolis Colts, as good of a story as they were, weren't a true "11-5" caliber team, that rookie quarterback Andrew Luck, as bright as his future may be, did not have a rookie-of-the-year kind of season this year, and that both the team and rookie have been vastly overrated this season on ESPN (and elsewhere). This was again showcased yesterday in the Colts' 24-9 loss to the Baltimore Ravens in the 1st round of the playoffs. The Ravens, having lost 4 of their previous 5 games, led throughout the contest, before placing the exclamation mark on it in the 4th quarter. Andrew Luck's performance was like many others he's had this year. The guy completed 28 of 54 pass attempts (51.9%) for 288 yards (5.3 per attempt), an interception, and a quarterback rating of 59.8. He rushed the ball 4 times for 35 yards (8.8 per carry), lost a fumble, and was sacked 3 times for a net minus of 21 yards (-7.0 averag...

For the record, I have nothing against the Indianapolis Colts. When they reached the Super Bowl with Peyton Manning as quarterback, I was pulling for them to win. Even this year, with the unfortunate health troubles hitting head coach Chuck Pagano, I was rooting for the Colts to have a better-than-expected season. However, having said all that, I'm getting a little tired of hearing ESPN commentators drool and orgasm over this team and rookie quarterback Andrew Luck in particular. I think in the long-term, Luck is going to be one of the better quarterbacks in the league, but the guy is not there yet - not even close. The Colts finished 11-5 on the season, but are they really an "11-5" football team? Out of 32 teams, the Colts rank 22nd in rushing yards, 21st in opponents passing yards 29th in opponents rushing yards, and 7th in passing yards - largely due to the fact they pass the football more than just about anyone. In the team's 11 wins, their opponents went a...

For the record, I have absolutely nothing against the Indianapolis Colts or their rookie quarterback Andrew Luck. If anything, I'm pulling for them this year, largely due to the unfortunate situation concerning their head coach Chuck Pagano and his battle with leukemia. However, I think Luck's been given far too much credit for the team's success this year. This was also the case on Sunday in the Colts' 27-23 win over the Tennessee Titans, as Luck completed just 16 of 34 pass attempts (47.1%) for 196 yards (5.8 per attempt), 1 touchdown, and 2 interceptions, for a very poor quarterback rating of 50.6. He was also sacked four times, which amounted to a loss of 25 yards. I have to give the Colts credit for finding ways to win this year, going from the #1 draft pick last year to 9-4 and playoff bound this year. However, they have played one of the easiest, if not the easiest schedule in all of football this year. In their 9 victories this year, they came against teams wi...

- Is it just me or is Indianapolis Colts rookie starting quarterback Andrew Luck receiving much more credit than he deserves? Granted, the Colts were the worst team in the NFL last year and are in the thick of the playoff reason this season under Luck's lead. However, as Joe Theismann once put it, "When things are going bad, the quarterback gets blamed more than he should and when things are going well, he gets more credit than he should." I'm not saying Andrew Luck won't be a fine quarterback someday. To be perfectly honest, I think in the long haul, he's going to be somewhat reminiscent of Peyton Manning. However, that's all speculation at this point. In the here and now, Andrew Luck is not the main reason the Colts are doing so well and the media needs to cut it out with that narrative. Let's look at the numbers. Luck is tied for first in all the league for most interceptions thrown with 16 (tied with Drew Brees of the New Orleans Saints). In compar...

Of all sports, football is definitely my favorite. I prefer college to pro ball, but will still watch NFL football most Sundays and Mondays during the course of the season. Rarely do I ever watch pre-season football, however. I've said for a while that the only purpose for pre-season games is to see which 5-10 players will complete the roster at the start of the season. While that's going on, coaches and owners pray to the football gods that their star player(s) don't get hurt in the process. As a fan of football, but not necessarily any particular team, there really is no point for me to watch pre-season games. The games are next to meaningless (unless a key player gets hurt). With all the substituting that occurs, it's difficult for most teams to find a rhythm suitable for a regular season game. One would be more prone to find this in practice than at a pre-season game, because all the first-teamers will be on the field together and on the same page with things. With ...