Luck - Rookie of the Year discussion -- RG3 officially named ROY

[vigilantex69]

If the Redskins hadn't made the playoffs then I would have definitely said Luck. It could honestly go either way.

[sfgiants5518]

I hope Griffin/Morris steal votes from eachother and Luck wins.

[R. Johnson#3]

If there was an award for "Most Valuable Rookie" Luck would run away with it. Unfortunately there isn't. ROY doesn't really have much to do with winning games so that doesn't help Luck. RG3 and the Skins making the playoffs doesn't help either. Luck pulled some amazing wins off this season but in the end it has to go to RG3.

[sfgiants5518]

Kiper picks Luck to All-Rookie team:

Mel Kiper’s All-Rookie Team is loaded with AFC South skill players on offense.

Kiper likes Colts quarterback Andrew Luck ahead of both Robert Griffin III and Russell Wilson as his rookie quarterback.

“He gets the most juice here because no team in history has had this kind of a turnaround after drafting at No. 1, and Luck was the greatest reason the Colts turned it around,” Kiper writes. “Luck wins here based on his body of work over the course of the season, which spearheaded Indy's stunning turnaround. But they're all great.”

Three pass catchers and a punter are also on the team with Luck:

T.Y. Hilton, WR, Colts

Kiper: “His 17.2 yards per catch was fifth in the NFL, more than bigger-name downfield targets like DeSean Jackson, Demaryius Thomas or Julio Jones. “

Kuharsky: He led rookies receivers with seven touchdowns and had Chuck Pagano thrown a challenge flag Sunday he would have had an eighth.

Justin Blackmon, WR, Jaguars

Kiper: “He answered some questions about whether he's a big-play threat in one of his best games of the season at Houston.”

Kuharsky: Blackmon is one of the few bright spots in Jacksonville where he showed he’s able to be what they envisioned when they drafted him.

Dwayne Allen, TE, Colts

Kiper: “He was by far the most productive rookie tight end, with 45 catches for 521 yards, and should have a great future along with Coby Fleener in Indy.”

Kuharsky: Allen also brings really good leadership qualities to the Colts locker room.

Bryan Anger, P, Jaguars

Kiper: “He averaged 47.8 yards per punt and consistently got good hang time. Only 5.5 percent of his punts went for touchbacks.”

Kuharsky: A very solid season with a lot of good hang time. Should be a top guy in the league for a long time.

http://espn.go.com/blog/afcsouth/pos...m-lucks-the-qb

[matthollabak]

If there was an award for "Most Valuable Rookie" Luck would run away with it. Unfortunately there isn't. ROY doesn't really have much to do with winning games so that doesn't help Luck. RG3 and the Skins making the playoffs doesn't help either. Luck pulled some amazing wins off this season but in the end it has to go to RG3.

Really since there is no official criteria, winning games and the turnaround the Colts have had should and will factor in with some voters...sadly though there are also voters who will just go with raw stats that are no longer relevant like the QB rating....which should have been changed when the West Coast dink and dunk systems started taking over.

Does anyone know when the votes are due for the ROY? I know they shouldn't, but I'm wondering if some may make their decision this year based on playoff games if they can since all 3 QBs plus the RB that should be in the conversation are all in the playoffs.

[Wyld1]

Luck deserves it but won't get it....too bad! It's not a fair system and I have a feeling that 5 years down the road the only one who will be of any significance will be Luck.

[Wyld1]

I borrowed this from elsewhere but believe it sums up my feelings on why Luck should be ROY and possibly MVP.

I think this - from the article - is a very nice synopsis of why Andrew should be ROY:


"But Indy can't quibble with what has been one of the league's most remarkable rookie seasons.

Luck won more games than any quarterback taken No. 1 in football's modern draft era. He tied an NFL record by leading Indianapolis to seven fourth-quarter wins. He presided over a nine-game turnaround from 2011 on a team that many expected to be the league's worst, finished with the league's best record (9-1) in one-possession games and broke the franchise record for rushing touchdowns by a quarterback (five).

He also threw more passes (627) and for more yards (4,374) than any first-year quarterback in league history while breaking the single-game rookie record for yards passing (433) and falling 15 completions short of Sam Bradford's rookie mark for completions (354 to 339). Luck finished third all-time among rookies in TD passes (23), trailing only Peyton Manning and Russell Wilson (each with 26), and had a better quarterback rating (76.5) than Manning (71.2) or John Unitas (74.0) in their rookie seasons.

And Luck did all that with six receivers who had never lined up with the Colts until September, despite the pressure of replacing Manning and during a season in which his offensive coordinator spent 12 weeks as the interim head coach before returning last week.

Luck never allowed any of that stuff to sidetrack him.

"Ever since the first day I saw him, he's been a leader. He doesn't really get razzled or get nervous or anxious or stuff like that," right tackle Winston Justice said. "Did he grow some? Maybe, but I didn't really see it. He's been a good player since the first day he got here."
Still, Luck's completion percentage is just 54.1, largely because the Colts have taken so many chances down the field. He threw the third-most interceptions in the league (18) and lost five fumbles, too, mistakes Luck took personally.

But if quarterbacks are judged simply by wins and losses, Luck is already among the league's best.

Only four quarterbacks — Manning, Tom Brady, Matt Ryan and Matt Schaub — won more games than the two-time Heisman Trophy runner-up this season. Only two others, Wilson and Aaron Rodgers, matched Luck's win total. Luck has beaten three playoff teams (Minnesota, Green Bay and Houston) and like Joe Flacco, Mark Sanchez and T.J. Yates over the last several years, will try to prove Sunday that rookie quarterbacks can win on the road in the playoffs."

Also, I never thought of it like that - but YES, we did beat three playoff teams!

ColtsHappy

[sfgiants5518]

Good article, pretty much sums up all the arguments. What people need to realize is Luck's CMP% is so low because he throws downfield over 25% of the time. That is obviously due to Arians' complex (at least more difficult than SEA/WASH) offense. He was asked to do more from the beginning. We didn't run any gimmicky stuff... we barely tried any trick plays. It was just "throw the ball Luck, and win us some games."

[Wyld1]

Good article, pretty much sums up all the arguments. What people need to realize is Luck's CMP% is so low because he throws downfield over 25% of the time. That is obviously due to Arians' complex (at least more difficult than SEA/WASH) offense. He was asked to do more from the beginning. We didn't run any gimmicky stuff... we barely tried any trick plays. It was just "throw the ball Luck, and win us some games."

So true about the completion percentage. Funny thing is let's see how RGIII fairs next year running that College Offense????? One thing about the NFL is that the Defense always has an answer and this offseason Defensive Coordinators will make that a thing of the past like the "WildCat", "Run and Gun" and other gimmick Offenses of the past.

[matthollabak]

The next thing after the completion percent RG3 fans especially will come at you with about Luck is his Rating...that should have been thrown out the window when everyone started copying Bill Walsh...when a 2 yard completion that is taken for a TD thanks to 60 YAC is scored the same as a perfectly placed 60 yard bomb there is a problem, because how much does a QB have to do with a screen pass other than getting it out at the right time? Might as well add hand offs to the rating system since they do about the same amount of work.

[sfgiants5518]

Quick question: doesn't yards per attempt (YPA) factor in YAC... and not necessarily how far downfield the football was thrown?

[Wyld1]

The next thing after the completion percent RG3 fans especially will come at you with about Luck is his Rating...that should have been thrown out the window when everyone started copying Bill Walsh...when a 2 yard completion that is taken for a TD thanks to 60 YAC is scored the same as a perfectly placed 60 yard bomb there is a problem, because how much does a QB have to do with a screen pass other than getting it out at the right time? Might as well add hand offs tot he rating system since they do about the same amount of work.

Exactly!

Both RGIII and Wilson went to playoff caliber teams, even though Washington didn't make the playoffs the year before he was drafted they had the talent there.

All Andrew did was make a 2-14 team into a playoff caliber team with a bunch of fellow rookies and some players taken off the scrap heap....it's a no brainer

[matthollabak]

Quick question: doesn't yards per attempt (YPA) factor in YAC... and not necessarily how far downfield the football was thrown?

I could be mistaken but I believe it counts every yard gained in the passing game and just divides it by the amount of attempts...shovel pass, screen, bomb all look the same to YPA and Rating as long as it isn't thrown behind. I've seen some advanced stats that have completion % during games but nothing widely used other than to prove points during broadcasts and a couple articles.

I realize that putting the ball in the right place helps a WR get YAC a lot of times...but a guy taking a screen pass for a TD usually has little to do with the WR and more to do with patience, blocking, and speed by the WR/RB.

[sfgiants5518]

I could be mistaken but I believe it counts every yard gained in the passing game and just divides it by the amount of attempts...shovel pass, screen, bomb all look the same to YAC and Rating as long as it isn't thrown behind. I've seen some advanced stats that have completion % during games but nothing widely used other than to prove points during broadcasts and a couple articles.

I realize that putting the ball in the right place helps a WR get YAC a lot of times...but a guy taking a screen pass for a TD usually has little to do with the WR and more to do with patience, blocking, and speed by the WR/RB.

The reason why i ask is people often cite how RG3's YPA is higher than Andrew Luck when we say Luck is asked to throw the ball deep more. So, I'm a little confused on how this stat works.

[matthollabak]

The reason why i ask is people often cite how RG3's YPA is higher than Andrew Luck when we say Luck is asked to throw the ball deep more. So, I'm a little confused on how this stat works.

Just confirmed your hunch with some math.

RG3 has 3200 passing yards with 393 attempts

3200/393=8.14, which is listed as RG3's YPA