3. Indianapolis Colts
Before Luck’s retirement, I had the Colts winning this division. They would’ve had the best quarterback among their divisional opponents and one of the better all-around situations on both sides of the ball. All of that is gone now with Luck’s departure, and quarterback Jacoby Brissett is left to pick up the pieces.
Don’t get me wrong: Brissett is an OK quarterback and was one of the better backups in the NFL when he was No. 2 on the depth chart, but there is a significant drop off from Luck to him – and it’s significant enough to ruin the Colts’ season.
Brissett was the starter in 2017 when Luck missed the entire season and the Colts went 4-12 that year.
Brissett does have a much better group around him in 2019, including a much-improved offensive line and a solid running back in Marlon Mack who can help carry the load; however until Brissett can prove he has what it takes to successfully run this offense week in and week out, I doubt the Colts can overcome the loss of a generational talent like Luck.
Aside from the quarterback position, the Colts do have a promising young defense, and a dangerous arsenal of receivers to help Brissett along. This Colts team isn’t the last-place lock many think, they are just far from the powerhouse they could’ve been.