If a coach had made a statement similar to the one suggested in the title of this article a year ago today, most around the NFL would be calling for his head.
However, after what were two vastly different seasons for these quarterbacks, it surely does appear that Washington Redskins signal caller Kirk Cousins is trending upwards while Andrew Luck of the Indianapolis Colts has seen his stock level out.
Nonetheless, a recent comment made by an unnamed NFL assistant coach to Bleacher Report’s Mike Freeman still has to be considered rather interesting.
“It’s possible we will look back maybe 10 years from now and say Kirk Cousins was better than Andrew Luck or almost any other young quarterback today,” the assistant said. “Maybe better than Russell Wilson, as well. I would have never thought that a year ago—mainly because I feel like a good quarterback there didn’t have the organizational support.”
To be fair, Cousins did have a much better season than Luck in 2015. He tallied 4,166 passing yards with 34 total touchdowns and 11 interceptions en route to leading Washington a surprising NFC East title.
Cousins also completed league-best 69.8 percent of his passes while accumulating a 101.6 quarterback rating.
On the other hand, Luck’s 2015 campaign was marred by injuries and inconsistency. He missed a total of nine games, tallying just 15 touchdowns and 12 interceptions in the seven games he started. Luck, a three-time Pro Bowl performer, also posted a 2-5 record as a starter.
If we were to go off one season, an argument could surely be made that Cousins is the better bet for the future. However, recency bias can make us a bit blind at times.
As we mentioned above, Luck earned three Pro Bowl trips in his first three seasons in the NFL, leading the Colts to 11 wins and a playoff appearance each season. He also combined for 86 touchdowns compared to 43 interceptions during that span.
On the complete opposite end of the ledger, Cousins threw 18 touchdowns and 19 interceptions while accumulating a 2-7 record in his first three seasons. Heck, the former Michigan State standout was once benched for Colt McCoy.
Luck, who might very well earn himself a contract that will make him the richest player in league history, has an excuse for last season’s struggles.
Simply put, he wasn’t healthy throughout the year. If he were to follow that up with another substandard performance in 2016, there might be a reason for the Colts to be concerned.
Until that happens, any mention of Cousins in the same sentence as Luck is pure hyperbole.