NFL MVP 2012-13: Andrew Luck Should Draw Serious Consideration

With the kind of year Andrew Luck of the Indianapolis Colts had, he should be drawing serious consideration for the AP's Most Valuable Player award for the 2012-13 season.

Luck is very much in the consideration for the Rookie of the Year award, but his great numbers warrant MVP discussion.

Now let's get one thing straight: I believe this race is between Adrian Peterson of the Minnesota Vikings and Peyton Manning of the Denver Broncos, with Peterson coming out the victor.

With that being said, it would be wrong to not at least put Luck in the conversation, considering just how vital he was to his team's success this season. After all, the award is for the most valuable player, and there's no doubt Luck was incredibly valuable to his team.

For starters, Luck helped lead his team to the playoffs, which at the beginning of the season was thought to be impossible. After all, the Colts were coming off a 2-14 season and were starting a new era with a rookie quarterback under center.

That should've KOd this franchise for at least one season and maybe more. But Luck helped change that notion and Indy went on to finish 11-5, just one game behind the Texans for the AFC South title.

Luck led all rookies in passing yards with 4,374, but what's more impressive is that his total left him at No. 7 in the entire league and less than 300 yards short of Manning's season total.

On top of that, Luck also accounted for the majority of his team's touchdowns throughout the season. Of the 34 offensive touchdowns scored by the Colts, Luck was responsible for an astounding 28 of them, including about half of the team's rushing touchdowns.

The clutch label was well deserved for Luck's rookie campaign as well.

Of the Colts' 11 wins this season, Luck led his team on seven fourth-quarter, game-winning drives that were instrumental in his team's making the playoffs. That total was the most ever by a rookie quarterback and was good enough for second most in a single season in NFL history.

It may be nearly impossible for a rookie to take home the MVP award, but Luck's accomplishments during the 2012-13 season are as close as one can get.