A. They’re on a pretty good pace to make the playoffs.
2. “Luck hype”? Haven’t seen much Luck hype, and I live in Indy. It’s coaches Pagano and Arians all day, every day.
~. There’s not a ton of other options in the AFC to overtake them - they’ve locked up a number of key h2h tie breakers.
I can assure you there’s a ton of Luck hype in the national media. Not hearing anything about Arians/Pagano except that the team is all in for Chuck, blah blah.
It’s true that nobody else in the AFC is any good, but the Colts’ remaining schedule has three wins in it at best (@ Pats, Buffalo, @ Detroit, Titans, @ Texans, @ Chiefs, Texans).
Which would put them at 9-7. Who’s going to pass them?
Yep, and it sucks for my Bengals too, should they mount a resurgence, because barring an epic collapse by Houston, there’s no way Indy is winning that division. The Rothlisberger injury is looking pretty fortuitous to the likes of the Bengals, Chargers and maybe the Dolphins, all chasing that second wildcard spot.
Of course, Indy could lose a bunch of games just as easily going forward too, but it doesn’t look likely.
I see at least four or five wins there…for sure they can beat Buffalo, Tennessee, Detroit and the Chiefs…and what if the Texans are resting starters in the final week? Remember, this is the same team that beat the Packers not so long ago.
This is just silly. The Colts are very likely to beat the Chiefs, and will be strong favorites at home against Buffalo and Tennessee. That’d put them at 9-7 even if they lose to Detroit - no gimme, Detroit has been awful - and then they’d have Houston, at home, in a game that will mean nothing to Houston. They’ve got a two game edge on the Bengals, Bills, Dolphins, and Chargers, and two of those teams would have to pass them for the Colts to drop out of the playoffs. Many of those teams play one another and/or have a lot of tough games on their schedule.
Put it this way: the Bengals, Bills, Dolphins, Titans, and Chargers all have four wins; to get to 10 wins, the Bills and Dolphins would have to run the table (not going to happen) and the other teams would have to go 6-1. You really think the Bengals will go 6-1, with games left against the Steelers, Ravens, and Chargers? Or the Chargers will do it? The San Diego Chargers?
Luck has been a very good player, especially for a rookie. Passer rating, the first statistic you cherry picked to denigrate Luck, is a terrible stat useful for basically nothing other than cherry picking to support tenuous points. In terms of Total QBR, a much better if still imperfect stat, Luck is fourth in the NFL this year.
Also, his team is 6-3 and fifth in the NFL in offensive yards per game. That’s in spite of the fact that they’re 14th in rushing yards per game… though that drops to near the bottom of the league if you take out Luck’s 159 rushing yards, fifth in the NFL.
Andrew Luck has been excellent as a rookie, and has – as the only substantial change in the Colts offense from last year – turned the team around, from a disaster to a team likely to make the playoffs. I’m not sure why you’re so invested in minimizing his or the Colts’ accomplishments, but it’s definitely counter to the facts.
I personally can see the Bengals going 6-1 the rest of the way, provided they play like they did against the Giants. Their next five opponents (not necessarily in this order)are KC, Dallas, The Imploding Eagles, Oakland and San Diego. So there’s a potential five wins right there. The Steelers might not have Rothlisberger back this season depending on his status, and the Ravens will probably be resting starters in the final week.
So I can see it. Do I think they will? Doubtful. But the rest of the AFC is so crappy this year too, and there’s two wildcard spots in play.
Luck’s statistics are pretty good considering he’s the rookie quarterback of a team with a mediocre roster. Reggie Wayne has had a comeback season, but the other wideouts include such luminaries as Donnie Avery and T.Y. Hilton, and Donald Brown isn’t setting the world on fire at RB. And the offensive line is not supposed to be any good from what I remember. And both quarterbacks have thrown 9 interceptions and lost 5 fumbles, but Vick has fumbled a few times more and turnovers are much more tolerable from your rookie starting QB than your 32-year-old veteran in the middle of a huge contract for a team that is supposed to make the playoffs.
The point about Vick is that he is universally agreed to be having a terrible season.
Actually, you’re right about the playoffs. I assume Pittsburgh will pass them but after that it’s slim pickings.
I didn’t “cherry pick” anything. Passer rating has been used to determine who is playing well pretty much for ever. “Total QBR” was introduced last season to much fanfare and has been completely ignored since.
I’m not “invested” in minimizing his accomplishments. I was one of the people who voted that he’d be Indy’s starter. It’s just that he’s getting a lot of credit for turning around a team that just wasn’t as bad as last year made it seem.
He’s played well for a rookie, no argument there - but he hasn’t lived up to the draft hype (not that anyone could) and isn’t a great quarterback yet. His statistics are broadly comparable to Sam Bradford’s rookie stats; good, but not great. Have a look at Andy Dalton’s statistics from last season.
Luck hater.
He has generally similar stats with superior talent and almost a decade more pro experience than Luck. The Colts’ offense seems to be outperforming the Eagles’ offense by most measurements. And seriously, look at Peyton Manning’s rookie stats.