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- Mar 19, 2019
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After joining forces with new head coach Frank Reich last year, not only did Luck look like his old self, but he arguably had the best season of his career.
He finished the season completing 430-of-639 passes (67.3%) for 4,593 yards (7.2 YPA) and 39 touchdown passes with 15 interceptions and a 98.7 passer rating (71.5 ESPN QBR).
In two playoff games, he went 38-of-68 passing (55.9%) for 425 yards (6.3 YPA) and three touchdown passes with just one interception and an 83.3 passer rating (56.3 ESPN QBR).
Luck set new single-season career highs in completions, pass attempts, completion percentage, passer rating, ESPN QBR and Pro Football Focus grade.
He also set numerous in-season and single-game records, breaking the franchise record for pass attempts in a game (62) and tying the record for completions (40) in Week 4. His 464 passing yards that day ranked second.
Luck tied former Colts quarterback Peyton Manning (eight) for the second-most consecutive games with at least three passing touchdowns in NFL history when Luck did so between Weeks 4-12. Luck trails only Tom Brady, who had 10 consecutive games in 2011.
The field general did a great job of spreading the ball around, as the Colts had four players with at least 50 receptions for just the fifth time in a single season team history (T.Y. Hilton [76], Eric Ebron [66], Nyheim Hines [63], Chester Rogers [53]).
By season’s end, Luck had thrown a touchdown pass to 13 different receivers, which tied the single-season NFL record with Matt Ryan (2016) and Drew Brees (2018).
Despite Luck’s excellent play, the machine that was the Colts’ seventh-ranked offense was put together by a team effort, especially by the offensive line that did a terrific job of keeping Luck upright.
Between Week 5-12, the Colts went 239 consecutive passes attempts without allowing a sack, which is the third-longest streak in NFL history behind Dan Marino (759) and Mark Rypien (252). The five consecutive games without a sack is also tied for the third-longest streak since 1982 with the 2010 New York Giants and 2008 Tennessee Titans. Overall, the Colts allowed the fewest sacks in the league (18) and had the top sack rate (2.7 percent).
The Colts' offense also finished No. 1 on third down (48.6 percent), and its 6,179 yards of offense was the third-most in a single season in franchise history.
Because of all of these accomplishments, it was a decorated season for Luck, who won the FedEx NFL Air Player of the Week for Week 12, AFC Offensive Player of the Week for Week 11, AFC Offensive Player of the Month for November, was a 2019 Pro Bowl selection and was ultimately named NFL Comeback Player of the Year by the Associated Press, Sporting News, Professional Football Writers of America and PFF.
The Colts were something of a Cinderella team in 2018 with very little outside expectations when the season began. However, they ultimately became just the third team in NFL history to make the playoffs after starting the season 1-5, and they did it on the shoulders of their leader, Andrew Luck.