2011 NFL Predictions: 5 Teams That Will Be in the Andrew Luck Sweepstakes

It seems like a foregone conclusion that Andrew Luck, junior QB at Stanford University, will be the first player taken during the 2012 NFL Draft.

Luck already has a storied college career with a list of accomplishments too long to list, although some highlights include being the runner-up for the 2010 Heisman Trophy and being named Pac-10 Offensive Player of the Year.

Some scouts have been calling him, "The best prospect they've ever scouted," and he has been drawing comparisons to former No.1 overall pick Peyton Manning.

Personally, the last time I ever saw as much hype about one player was back in 2005 with the Sidney Crosby sweepstakes.

Whoever finishes with the worst record in the upcoming NFL season will have the opportunity to draft Luck, and some are already predicting that certain teams will throw the season so they have the chance to draft their future franchise quarterback.

Obviously things can change before April, but here are five teams that will be in the "Suck For Luck" sweepstakes.

Side Note: I didn't include the Buffalo Bills because to me, if they get a lottery pick, they have enough holes to fill on their roster without including QB where they have the capable Ryan Fitzpatrick.

Lewis Hughes is an aspiring journalist with far too few followers, follow him on Twitter: http://twitter.com/#!/lah_8

Washington Redskins

Currently, the Washington Redskins have John Beck and Rex Grossman competing to be the team's starting quarterback.

If you know anything about football, then you know the Redskins are in trouble.

Drafting Luck would not fix all of their problems, but he is a winner, plain and simple. Luck would give the team a chance to win games and would probably help some of the team's receivers as well.

A bit of smart spending by Dan Synder (as if), and this team, with Luck under center, could be challenging for a Super Bowl in five years.

The Redskins are going absolutely nowhere despite what Mike Shanahan thinks, and it would be in the team's best interest to try and get that No. 1 pick to draft Luck.

Miami Dolphins

Similar to Washington, the Dolphins do not have a starting-caliber quarterback on their team.

Chad Henne has proven over the last few seasons he isn't the answer, and Miami only has Matt Moore behind him on the depth chart.

Yeah.

Miami needs to look to the draft and find their next QB that way, seeing as they can't seem to sign or trade for a capable starter (*cough, Kyle Orton*).

Whilst I doubt Miami will land the No.1 pick, the team may decide to go big and find the next Dan Marino in Andrew Luck.

Oakland Raiders

This season may be a throwaway for the Raiders.

Not only did they lose the best cornerback in the league in Nnamdi Asomugha, they also lost their leading receiver, tight end Zach Miller.

With the first overall pick, not even Al Davis could make the wrong decision here.

I'll get something straight, I have nothing against Jason Campbell. He is a starting quarterback in the league and a good player, but when you have no stars on the offensive side of the ball apart from Darren McFadden, the team needs an elite quarterback to put them in contention to win games.

Oakland also needs a face of the franchise after Asomugha's departure, and Luck would fill that void as well. 

Cleveland Browns

The Browns actually find themselves in a great position.

Their starter will be Colt McCoy, a second-year quarterback from the Texas Longhorns.

McCoy will probably have all season as the team's starter since there are little hopes of the Browns beating out the Steelers and Ravens for a playoff spot.

If McCoy plays up to or betters the team's expectations, they'll know he is the QB of the future for them; if not, the team lacks any other players who can carry this team (I'm sorry I'm not buying the Peyton Hillis hype until he replicates his success), and the Browns could find themselves with the chance to pick first in the draft next year.

When the Browns draft next year, they'll know whether McCoy is the future of their team or whether Andrew Luck could be. 

Seattle Seahawks

As a 'Hawks fan, this one pains me a lot.

However, the fact of the matter is that although Seattle has added a lot of nice weapons this season, they don't have the quarterback to manufacture a lengthy playoff run.

Tarvaris Jackson may surprise us all, but he isn't the future of Seattle.

This team has enough talent to win their division, especially in the weak NFC West, but Seattle's future may end up being in the hands of someone like Luck.

Jackson/Whitehurst could lead Seattle to repeat as NFC West champions, but at the same time, they could doom the Seahawks to a first overall pick.

Even if they don't fail, I could realistically see Seattle trading up in the draft for Luck.

Andrew Luck on this Seattle team with Zach Miller, Sidney Rice and co.? That is a playoff team.