Quarterback Controversy in Indianapolis?

We so-called “media sharks” (I got called that in a response to one of my previous stories) will more than likely take a major hit on this one but this debate is too tantalizing not to dip my toe in the water. Archie Manning has stated that his son Peyton Manning and future number-one-overall draft pick, Andrew Luck, do not want to be teammates.

The speculation is that bringing Luck in behind Manning will slow Luck’s progress. Many people believe that Luck is ready to play now. That he has the ability to come in and take over a team from day one just like Manning did when he was drafted by the Indianapolis Colts over 12 years ago.

We know that Luck is a good player but he’s no Manning. There is a lot he could stand to learn from Manning about playing the quarterback position that would accelerate his growth. Besides, who do you know that came out of college as a finished product at the quarterback position? There’s always something to learn; ways to improve at that position.

Even having an NFL-great like Archie Manning as a father and mentor didn’t keep Peyton from tossing 28 interceptions as a rookie. Manning did manage to throw 26 touchdowns his rookie season in Indy but that was overshadowed by the insane amount of interceptions he threw. Being thrown in the fire the way Peyton was can have differing effects on different players.

Now Manning obviously got better but there are top picks at the quarterback position that had all the talent in the world and ended up either being a bust or having a mediocre career. There are a lot of quarterbacks who came out of college with the label “can’t-miss-prospect” who missed or failed to live up to expectations.

Then there are quarterbacks who weren’t even on people’s radars coming into the league but ended up being really good. No matter how good a player is in college, high expectations are a burden that some players seem to have a problem dealing with. A guy who has been a winner all his life may react differently when he is placed on a team that isn’t talented enough to win. You really get to see who they are when the losses start to pile up.

And looking back, there have been some really talented quarterbacks drafted over the years who have had varying levels of success in the NFL. See how many of these names you recognize: Rick Mirer, Heath Shuler, David Carr, Alex Smith, Vince Young, Matt Leinart, JaMarcus Russell, Brady Quinn, Jim Druckenmiller, Ryan Leaf, Tim Couch, Akili Smith, Jeff George, Dan McGwire, and David Klinger.

Sure a lot of quarterbacks that were drafted with these guys were successful but these guys stand out because of how high they were drafted. The higher you are drafted usually the worse the team. Some people like to blame bad teams for ruining a talented quarterback’s career but some of the teams that a few of these guys landed with weren’t bad at all. Sometimes a good team just has an off year whether it’s because of key injuries like the case with the Colts this year or maybe bad coaching or some other factor.

What player in their right mind wouldn’t want to be a part of a winning organization though? I don’t care how good you are, there is no way that Tom Brady, Aaron Rodgers or Drew Brees could be as good as they are without the talent they have around them and being able to play in the same system virtually their whole careers.

What if either one of those players had to change offensive systems every year like Alex Smith did in San Francisco? How good do you think that Rodgers’, Brady’s or Brees’ numbers would be if they had to go through that? None of those guys started a regular season game during their rookie years and you see how they turned out.

But Luck may feel that he can be the next Manning. Luck may feel that it’s worth it to experience a rough rookie season like the ones Manning, Troy Aikman, and Matt Stafford had to endure instead of waiting in the wings and inheriting a Super Bowl caliber team the way Brady and Rodgers did. He may not be able to handle the pressure that comes with playing in the shadow of a great quarterback.

Once again we must take into account that neither Peyton Manning nor Andrew Luck made this statement about not wanting to play together. Now it’s possible that Archie could know enough about Peyton’s wishes to know whether his son feels that way or not but I doubt he knows enough about Luck’s mindset to speak on his behalf.

We will all know for sure soon enough though. As the draft approaches we will see just how Luck feels about a potential career in Indy. As long as he is on board the Colts are sure to draft him but if not then it is possible that he and his father Oliver could orchestrate a move like the one Eli and Archie pulled back in 2004. Hey, if Luck decides he doesn’t want the job, rest assured that either Matt Barkley or Robert Griffin will be more than happy to fill the position.

Roosevelt Hall is an NFL Blogger for The Sport Mentalist and also writes for both The Penalty Flag and Outside The Redzone. He can be contacted at RHall_TPFB@Yahoo.com. Follow him on Twitter @Sportmentalist.