Andrew Luck: Colts Supporting Cast Will Prevent QB from Fulfilling Expectations

The Indianapolis Colts grabbed Andrew Luck with the No. 1 pick in the 2012 NFL Draft, but a lack of overall talent on the team's roster will prevent the Stanford quarterback from reaching his potential early in his career.

Luck is undoubtedly the best quarterback prospect to come along in more than a decade, but without elite talent around him he will struggle in his first few years in the NFL. 

The Colts had a ton of holes on their roster entering this year's draft and while they did well with some of their picks, they didn't come close to filling all of those gaps. I really liked the selection of Stanford tight end Coby Fleener with their second-round pick. Luck and Fleener are best friends and should create a dynamic pass-catch duo.

That said, I really didn't like that the Colts took Dwayne Allen, another tight end out of Clemson with their third-rounder. Allen has an average ceiling and I thought it was a waste of a pick that could have been used to beef up the defensive line or secondary. Washington nose tackle Alameda Ta'amu was still on the board at that point and new head coach Chuck Pagano's 3-4 defense needs a stud to man the middle and Indianapolis could have certainly used Ta'amu.

The Colts took Florida International speed-burning wideout T.Y. Hilton later in the third round and that was a solid pick. While Hilton is a little one-dimensional and needs a lot of polish as a receiver, you can't teach his kind of speed. In addition to that, getting Ohio's LaVon Brazill in the sixth round could be a steal, but he won't show his ability for a few seasons. 

In the meantime Luck will be throwing to an aging Reggie Wayne and some combination of Austin Collie and Donnie Avery. That isn't exactly a scary receiving corps. 

In the fifth round Indianapolis took Alabama defensive tackle Josh Chapman who tore his ACL in 2011 and who I don't believe will fit as a nose tackle in a 3-4. 

One area the Colts completely neglected during the draft was improving the team's offensive line. They signed Samson Satele to play center this offseason, and took Anthony Castonzo and Ben Ijalana in last year's draft, but none of those guys projects as a game-changer. Castonzo struggled mightily as a rookie and Ijalana missed most of his rookie year with a torn ACL.

Meanwhile, Satele is solid but not spectacular and will be playing for his third team in six years in the NFL. The rest of the interior of the team's offensive line is in flux, as Ryan Diem is gone, and the Colts drafted Georgia's James Anderson in the seventh round. Not much can be expected from him early in his career.

Indianapolis also looks thin at running back. Second-year back Delone Carter has shown flashes but certainly can't be relied upon yet, while Donald Brown has looked like a bust for most of his three-year career. The addition of Mississippi State's Vick Ballard in the fifth round of this year's draft will give the Colts a bruiser with very little upside. I don't see him actually contributing too much.

Andrew Luck will eventually become a Pro Bowl quarterback, but the Colts didn't do enough this offseason to ensure he has enough talent surrounding him early in his career. Indianapolis' defense is still a mess and offensively they still have a whole lot of work to do.