Luck’s coach warns Colts of passing on QB,
Whitfield warns Colts not to ‘overthink’ pick
Indianapolis Colts owner Jim Irsay publicly has danced the line between quarterbacks Andrew Luck and Robert Griffin III, leaving some question as to whom the team will choose with the NFL draft’s top pick April 26.
Luck’s personal coach, quarterback guru George Whitfield Jr., warns the Colts against straying from the near-consensus top pick.
“If they overthink this, they’re going to make a mistake they’ll regret for years,” Whitfield told
The Indianapolis Star.
Whitfield, who runs the quarterback training firm Whitfield Athletix out of San Diego, knows what a No. 1 pick looks like after working with Cam Newton before the Carolina Panthers chose him first overall last year.
The coach takes issue with the growing notion among analysts that Luck is a safe pick with low upside.
“He’s athletic. He’s cat-quick. He’s strong,” Whitfield said. “People are saying he’s a prototypical pocket passer, like they’re putting him in this category. But there’s a lot more he can do.
“He’s constantly being categorized as being safe, the sure thing, almost to the point where it’s a negative, like there’s a ceiling, no apparent way for him to get better.”
Peters problem:
Philadelphia Eagles Pro Bowl left tackle Jason Peters ruptured his Achilles tendon last week while training and is expected to miss the 2012 season. He is scheduled to have surgery on his right leg today for an injury that typically has a recovery time of nine to 12 months.
Peters, a Pro Bowl pick each of the last five seasons, allowed one sack in 2011 and was instrumental in Lesean Mccoy’s 1,309-yard rushing season.
The Eagles re-signed tackle King Dunlap to a one-year deal Friday. A seventh-round pick in 2009, he played in 12 games last season, including two starts. The team also has about $10 million in salary-cap space and three of the first 51 picks in the draft to address the opening.
Tebow’s future:
If Tim Tebow has his sights set on Mark Sanchez’s starting job, the New York Jets quarterback is keeping it to himself.
Tebow told a radio station in New York on Friday that he was “not sure” if he would ever be a starting quarterback again and said that thought doesn’t even concern him right now.
“I don’t know what the future holds, but I know who holds my future,” Tebow said, referring to his strong Christian faith.
“That’s something that has always given me peace and comfort. That’s why I don’t have to worry about the future. I can just worry about today and worry about becoming better as a football player and a person.”
Briefly:
The Oakland Raiders acquired running back Mike Goodson from the Panthers for offensive tackle Bruce Campbell. . . . The Raiders agreed to a one-year deal with unrestricted free agent Philip Wheeler to fill their void at starting outside linebacker. Wheeler played 13 games for the Colts last season, making 80 tackles and recording one sack. . . . The NFL suspended New York Giants running back Andre Brown for the first four games of the 2012 season for violating the league policy on performance-enhancing substances. Brown, a fourthround pick in 2008, was on the Giants’ practice squad last season and did not play.