NFL teams
KC Joyner, ESPN Staff Writer 9y

Colts need more help for Luck

NFL, Indianapolis Colts

The Indianapolis Colts and Andrew Luck would do well to heed the lesson learned by the Don Shula/Dan Marino-era Miami Dolphins.

In his first 13 seasons as Miami's head coach, Shula's Dolphins often had access to future Hall of Famers at quarterback (Bob Griese) and wide receiver (Paul Warfield) and yet they finished in the upper half of the league in rushing in all but two seasons. This approach yielded fantastic results, including nine playoff berths and two Super Bowl victories in four appearances.

That trend was reversed in the 13 seasons Shula and Marino worked together, as Miami finished in the upper half of the league in rushing only two times. This pass-happy approach worked from 1983-85 (three straight playoff appearances and one Super Bowl berth) but fell short in the 10 years after that, as these two led the Dolphins to the postseason only four times and past the divisional round on a single occasion.

Much like Marino, Luck's skills have allowed the Colts to get by without a powerful rushing attack during his first three seasons. As successful as this era has been, there are many reasons to think the Colts have reached the point where they need to putting less pressure on Luck to carry the offense.

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