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Thursday, March 8, 2012

Peyton Manning’s legacy already a burden on Andrew Luck

Good luck Andrew Luck, you’re going to need it. I’m pretty sure he already knows that it’s going to take more than having the word “luck” in his name and a horseshoe on his helmet for Luck to make the Indianapolis Colts as successful as his predecessor did.

Still, no one was happier than Luck to hear that Peyton Manning wasn’t going to be a Colt next season because it all but assures him that he will be Indy’s starting quarterback the very moment he joins the Colt’s organization.  

While that may sound like a good thing to the ambitious, future-building-block of the franchise, history shows that replacing a legend is not an easy thing to do.

Sure Aaron Rodgers was able to successfully succeed Brett Farve in Green Bay and Steve Young was also successful taking over after Joe Montana was shipped out of San Francisco but both Rodgers and Young learned the game as backups to those legends before getting their shots.

Luck won’t have that luxury. He also won’t inherit a championship caliber team the way Young and Rodgers did.

Instead Luck will lead a rebuilding offense and may end up facing Manning at some point this season if Manning signs with a team in the AFC. Luck also has the added misfortune of being the number one pick in the draft.

Why is being drafted the number one overall pick such a bad thing? Well for starters it means you are usually on the worst team in the league which the Colts were last season. The situation is magnified by the expectations thrust upon the first pick.

The first pick in the draft is considered to be the best player in the draft. Being the first pick comes with a lot of scrutiny, media attention and expectations. Not a good combination when you add in the losing which is bound to happen when you play for a bad team.

Secondly, there have only been two quarterbacks picked number one overall since 1990 that have led their teams to a Super Bowl victory and both just happened to have the last name Manning. Drew Bledsoe did lead the New England Patriots to a Super Bowl but he lost to…….Brett Farve and the Green Bay Packers.

Bledsoe would go from being a franchise quarterback to a journeyman signal-caller a few years later after being unseated by Tom Brady.

So only two out of the 11 quarterbacks picked number one overall from 1990 to 2009 has won a championship with a third making it to the big game although in a losing effort.

Those aren’t bad odds but you have to keep in mind that none of those guys had to follow a legend. The team’s fan base and ownership were willing to be a lot more patient with them. Luck will always have Manning’s shadow hanging over him every time he steps on the field.

And as it was when both Young and Rodgers took over their respective teams, every move will be scrutinized by the fans, the media, and management. Manning has set a level of excellence that the Indy fans have grown accustomed to so Luck will have to step up to the learning curve quickly or face a backlash from impatient fans.

But even delivering wins won’t be enough. The only way he will ever step out of Manning’s shadow is to either leave Indianapolis or win a championship. Which one do you think will happen first?

Roosevelt Hall is an NFL Blogger for The Sport Mentalist and is also an NBA Blogger for The Sport Mentalist 2. He can be contacted at RHall_TPFB@Yahoo.com. Follow him on Twitter @sportmentalist and add him on Facebook Roosevelt Hall Thesportmentalist.

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