A few weeks ago I was going to begin to write a power rankings column and trying to come up with a clever way of separating the groups. Then last night, as I partied with smurfs, ghouls and goblins, I watched Andrew Luck operate against a very amped USC team hell bent on pulling off the upset.
I had never seen him play so this was my first opportunity to watch the best college prospect QB since John Elway. I left being very impressed. Stanford is clearly much less of a team without him and it shows in his decisionmaking and when he makes his reads. He stays strong in the pocket and never gets fazed by approaching defenses that blitz him. His arm is amazing and he can make the touch pass. He has all the tools and then you add in his dad was a football coach and you can see why quarterbacks like him are born and bred and not just created overnight.
With that in mind let’s try and put teams in perspective of young college QBs who I feel will make it to the pros and do well starting from the worst to first:
“Joy Luck Club”-
32. Indianapolis Colts (0-7)
31. Miami Dolphins (0-6)
30. St Louis Rams (0-6)
29. Arizona Cardinals (1-5)
28. Denver Broncos (2-4)
27. Minnesota Vikings (1-5)
This aptly named group is led by the worst team in all of football and also quite possibly the worst place that Andrew Luck could end up. The Colts could risk pissing off the second greatest QB of their franchise by taking Andrew Luck. Do the Colts trade the pick for a ransom and rebuild around Peyton for one more sustained run and risk hinging their hopes on Peytons bum neck (which by the way will never ever be a 100%) and draft picks which over the last few years the Colts have proven that they religiously strike out on? OR do they bring back this starting cast, take Luck and have him sit and learn behind the master for the next 3 years and risk pissing him off by keeping a constant clicker in the back of his mind? Honestly the possibility could only lead to one outcome IF what we think about Peyton is ultimately true: this will drive him even more. What happens in week 15 when the Colts are sitting at 0-14or 1-13 and in the drivers seat for Luck? How does Peyton allow a bunch of doctors to make him sit? We’re gonna know a lot about Peyton’s psyche come December. He should be sitting the entire year but will he risk the Colts having the number one pick so they could possibly pick his replacement? I think Peyton’s ego likes him being the sole option; the engine that makes everything work; the single most important player to his franchise than anyone else.
The place I WANT to see him end up? Arizona. Because that defense is young and has pieces and now it just needs a QB. They shouldve traded for Kyle Orton who wouldve been the perfect QB for the team as they transition and try to find the QB of the future. Of course the problem is, with Orton, the Cards wouldn’t be in this group so maybe they knew what they were doing.
“Taylor (Martinez) Made Club”
26. Seattle Seahawks
25. Jacksonville Jags
24. Carolina Panthers
23. Washington Redskins
22. Philadelphia Eagles
Out of this group I can only see the Eagles making the leap out. The one thing this entire group has going for them is that they all have one overwhelming strength. With the exception of, and this is ironic, the Eagles and Panthers all these teams have excellent defenses and are being held back by their offenses. That can be fixed by an athletic good QB. But two of these five franchises already have their QB so its just skill positions they need to upgrade. But again the question becomes for the Jags and Eagles: how much do you believe in the guys you have to pass on a franchise QB that could be a better option?
“The Matt Barkley Group”
21. Kansas City Chiefs (3-3)
20. Cleveland Browns (3-3)
19. Tennessee Titans (3-3)
18. Oakland Raiders (4-3)
17. Cincinatti Bengals (4-2)
16. Tampa Bay Bucs (4-3)
These are the average QBs of the group and this wouldve been the Red Rifle group except I don’t know what Matt Barkley is going to do in the pros. What I see from him is that he’s been in a major program in an era where his team has been stripped of all its major awards and ripe in scandal and has done a really great job. He’s a good looking kid who can carry any of these right now respectably. I like Barkley. I think he’s going to have a really good career in the NFL.
“The I’m still Christian Ponder(ing) Division”
15. Chicago Bears (4-3)
14. Buffalo Bills (4-2)
13. San Diego Chargers (4-2)
12. Houston Texans (4-3)
11. New York Jets (4-3)
10. Detroit Lions (5-2)
9. Atlanta Falcons (4-3)
8. Dallas Cowboys (3-3)
This division is appropriately named because you still don’t know. Either they are good or they are just average. All of these teams will finish .500 or better but if they finish .500 it would be a shocker and worse, well, you don’t wanna know. Some of you may be shocked to see a 3-3 team in front of teams who are above .500 but if you look at the Cowboys moving forward, they clearly have the easiest schedule and the most talent on both sides to make a huge leap into the first or second group. Dez is AS talented as Megatron and WILL put up more stats meanwhile the Jets will have to get back to the ground and pound and if the last game was any indication, Shonn Greene may be finding his legs and Sanchize is finally meeting up with Plaxico in the end zone which is a good sign. One more thing, after last weeks horrific 2 minute drill, can we agree to drop this ridiculous notion that Philip Rivers is better than Eli Manning? Just stop.
“The Red Rifle Division”
7. Baltimore Ravens (4-2)
6. Pittsburgh Steelers (5-2)
5. New York Giants (4-2)
4. New Orleans Saints (5-2)
3. San Francisco 49ers (5-1)
The Ravens and Steelers will almost certainly climb when all is said and done but I think the problem here is that they haven’t erased any of the lingering doubts that their teams have. Are the Steelers defense too old? Are the Ravens lacking offensively? Look at the stats, no where is one teams defense so overwhelmingly out playing its offensive counterparts than in Baltimore. Must feel like the old days there. The Giants are actually playing beyond expectations and so are the 49ers and the Niners are one bogus play away from being 6-0 and perhaps clinching a spot in the other list. The Saints will always be dangerous while Drew Brees is playing and is there one guy whose signing has paid more dividends for than Darren Sproles? The guy has already outplayed his contract.
“The Caaaaaaaaaam Division”
2. New England Patriots (5-1)
1. Green Bay Packers (7-0)
The two teams with clearly the biggest advantages in the sport. The Pats with Brady and Belichiek and the Packers with Woodson and Rodgers. There isn’t a tandem of talents like these two groups in a long time and they are clearly the two best teams in the league. I don’t know if the Pack will go undefeated but if there’s any chance of it ever happening there isn’t a team more equipped to do it than this team and this franchise.
Now here are the picks:
Colts (+8.5) over TITANS
TEXANS (-9.5) over Jags
PANTHERS (-3.5) over Vikings
Saints (-13.5) over RAMS
RAVENS (-12.5) over Cardinals
GIANTS (9.5) over Dolphins
BILLS (-4.5) over Redskins
LIONS (-3) over broncos
Patriots (-2.5) over STEELERS
49ERS (-9) over browns
Bengals (-1.5) over SEAHAWKS
COWBOYS (-3) over Eagles
Chargers (-3) over CHIEFS
Enjoy week 8!!!
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The Lazy Eye of Sports 