Tom Pelissero

USA TODAY Sports

Back at Stanford, Pep Hamilton admits there were times he'd resolve disagreements with Andrew Luck over the game plan by saying something along the lines of "because I said so."

Now that they're together again as offensive coordinator and quarterback with the Indianapolis Colts, Luck has just as much time as Hamilton to watch film and get a feel for the opponent. So the dialogue naturally has evolved, and Hamilton is listening more than ever.

"We have to both feel good about any given play that is called," Hamilton told USA TODAY Sports recently. "But it's more important that he feels good about it than I do."

The relationship between NFL quarterback and play-caller is perhaps the most important in all of sports. No other position can have a greater impact on a game. No other coach has greater influence over the QB's ability to function at the highest possible level on game day.

And for all the long hours coaches spend developing hyper-sophisticated offensive schemes, the reality is it's all for nothing if the guys running them aren't doing so with peak confidence.

"The biggest mistake I ever made was trying to call plays that I liked," Green Bay Packers coach Mike McCarthy said. "There's nothing worse than a coach sitting in a meeting on Monday and a guy saying, 'I just wasn't quite comfortable with that.' To me, that's my fault."

Just look at the mess in Chicago to see what happens when the quarterback and his coaches aren't on the same page.

The Bears' issues bubbled to the surface last week when offensive coordinator Aaron Kromer copped to criticizing Jay Cutler for, among other things, not checking out of bad run plays. Coach Marc Trestman, who calls the plays, ended up benching Cutler this week.

"Right now, Jay's not at a good point. He's not playing as well as he can play," Trestman told reporters Thursday. "I've said that starts with me."

Game planning

Each team has its own process for developing a game plan. But the common thread in successful operations is constant, open communication throughout the week between quarterback and play-caller, who share a vision by game day about how they're going to attack.

Every Monday, Denver Broncos quarterback Peyton Manning and offensive coordinator Adam Gase meet to "clean up" the previous game, talking about adjustments and how they'll handle anything unexpected the opponent threw at them going forward. By Tuesday afternoon, the next game plan is set, but it continues to evolve all the way up until game day.

"He's always told me, 'Hey, the more you can kind of see it the way I'm seeing it, the better it's going to be,'" Gase said. "And it's different perspectives, right? He's on the field, I'm on the sideline. Things are happening fast. I'm trying to be two calls ahead, three calls ahead."

Some of those are base calls within the scheme. Others are game plan-specific calls, which have been vetted through the limited reps afforded through the practice week.

If there's a disagreement, "I think you just talk through it," said Dallas Cowboys passing game coordinator Scott Linehan, who calls the plays for Tony Romo. "We'll come through and say, 'You know, I didn't really like that here, but next time we get in that situation, let's do this.'"

Each game plays out differently. Some of those unscouted looks can have coaches putting in plays on the sideline they didn't expect to use. Within each series and between them, when pictures are available, there is evaluation and reevaluation of how things are playing out.

The key is to have a foundation and enough trust to be flexible about how it evolves.

"I hope he never takes advantage of me, but he knows if he doesn't like something it won't be called," McCarthy said of his quarterback, MVP candidate Aaron Rodgers.

"Because I'll ask him every day: 'Hey, what do you think about this? I really like this concept.' He'll rep it and (say), 'Eh. Hey, maybe it needs more cooking. (Try it) next week or use it down the road when we come against a similar coverage.'"

Rodgers' input continues straight through the scripting of the Packers' first seven calls. He and McCarthy meet every Friday to discuss the priority plays in different categories – first action pass, first three-step drop, first third-and-1, etc. – as well as what can be chopped, limiting overage that can be counterproductive come game day.

"You've got to be able to communicate," Linehan said, "and I think the best thing (Romo) does is with coaches is his willingness to communicate."

Getting in the groove

Hamilton, who was Luck's coordinator as a Stanford senior in 2011 and rejoined him with the Colts last year, doesn't involve his young QB in selecting "starters" for the game yet. But they do discuss options, and Hamilton hopes by that point he knows what Luck wants anyway.

"Once we get in the flow of the game, there are some nonverbal cues that I typically get from Andrew," Hamilton said. "It's like any process of when he's getting close to being in that zone. He just finds this rhythm."

There is a rhythm to play-calling, too, though Gase says that's "probably the least important thing" compared to the rhythm of the players on the field. And some level of disagreement about how to establish it from week to week probably is inevitable.

"We'll battle through some stuff every once in a while," Gase said. "If I like something more than (Manning) does, I'll try to stick it into practice. We'll work on it. The thing is, I always feel like he gives me an honest look. If he doesn't like it, we'll just pull it out of game plan and we'll try to rework it in there some other time.

"It's the same thing with when he's got an idea and I might be kind of shaking my head like I don't think it's a good idea, but we'll still practice it and try to see if it'll work. If it doesn't work out, he's not afraid to be like, 'Ah, that didn't look very good did it?'"

More often than not, Gase said, Manning's ideas end up working. But that give and take is essential, as is a coach's willingness to defer at times. The less often the quarterback makes a Monday morning revelation about his lack of comfort in a Sunday play call, the better.

"It doesn't happen a whole lot," McCarthy said, "but (it's) very helpful when you're in a relationship now for nine years like Aaron and I."

Hamilton and Luck are really just coming to the end of their third year together. But the trust is there, right up through the adjustments Luck makes at the line.

When Luck enters "the zone", Hamilton is right there with him.

"There's a really positive synergy between both of us in a sense," Hamilton said, "because I can call a play and I feel confident that whatever play I call, he's going to find a way to make it work and he's going to manage the play appropriately. That's what he'll continue to do."

Contributing: Lindsay Jones in Irving, Texas.