If things had shaken out just a bit differently during the 2011 season — say, the Indianapolis Colts won a few more games, and the Washington Redskins had lost a bit more frequently — it’s entirely plausible that Andrew Luck would be heading west to Lucas Oil Stadium this weekend with his Redskins teammates.

But even though Luck was taken by the Colts with the first pick in the NFL Draft in 2012, and Washington used the No. 2 pick on Robert Griffin III, that scenario is something Luck hasn’t pondered.

“Nope,” Luck said with resound on Wednesday. “Haven’t thought about that.”

Luck should be thankful he has avoided the mess that has consumed Griffin and the Redskins during his three seasons — but then again, if Luck was playing in Washington, none of it likely would have happened, anyway. The 25-year-old was considered one of the most can’t-miss draft prospects in the past decade, a blue-collar quarterback who had the fortune of working within a pro-style offense at Stanford and had no visible weaknesses upon leaving.

He’s thrown for 3,641 yards this season, more than any other quarterback in the league, and has completed more passes through 11 games than anyone but Peyton Manning and Drew Brees. Luck has been selected to the Pro Bowl after each of his first two seasons, and he’s also achieved a measure of team success, helping the Colts reach the playoffs each winter, falling short of an AFC championship game appearance in January with a loss to New England.

“Andrew Luck is going to be the guy, provided he’s healthy, that will threaten all of these records someday, because he is absolutely the real deal,” said Steve Mariucci, the former coach in San Francisco and Detroit who is now an NFL Network commentator. “He’s got it all. I mean, he’s strong. He’s smart. He’s a leader. He can make all the throws. You want him to run the zone read? He can do that. You want him to run the no-huddle? He can do that. Take a hit? Give a hit? He can do that.

“When you start talking, really — we all ought to respect Peyton Manning and Tom Brady, being that they’ve been doing this and done this so well for so long, and we keep them on top of the pedestal, but Andrew Luck is right there.”

That comes in stark contrast to Griffin, who, despite edging Luck for the Heisman Trophy after the 2011 season and winning the Offensive Rookie of the Year award from The Associated Press a year later, has otherwise struggled to adapt to the professional game. Griffin this week was unceremoniously benched by coach Jay Gruden, marking the second time in two seasons the aimless Redskins have turned to a backup quarterback to finish out their season.

Luck threw for 4,374 yards in 2012, a league record for a rookie, before offensive coordinator Bruce Arians left to become the coach in Arizona. Colts coach Chuck Pagano replaced Arians with Pep Hamilton, Luck’s offensive coordinator at Stanford during his junior year, and the team spent time early last season making that adjustment.

Initially, the Colts tried to focus on the running game, realizing only after their bye week they needed to rely upon Luck’s arm. He averaged 32 passing attempts over the first seven games but nearly 39 during the final nine, then threw 45 and 41 passes during the two playoff games — including a wild-card victory over Kansas City, when Indianapolis rallied from a 28-point second-half deficit to win.

The familiarity with Hamilton’s offensive philosophy, Luck said, was instrumental down the stretch. It didn’t take long for most of those concepts to translate to the professional game, and Luck found it easy to serve as a liaison between Hamilton and his offensive teammates when it came to teaching some of those finer points.

Yet it hasn’t always been easy, Luck said. Coming out of college, he wasn’t adequately ready for the length of the NFL season, which wore him down at the end of his rookie year. He still finds it hard to move past his mistakes, and some of the situational aspects of the game — third-down, red zone, taking a sack and throwing the ball away — are things he still struggles with.

“I don’t think I necessarily still ‘have it,’ whatever that is,” Luck said. “I would like to think that I’m trying to learn, get better every day. I think we’re doing some good things. I’d like to think I know more now than I did my rookie year — and I’m better — but I don’t think I necessarily had that ‘a-ha’ revelation moment.”

Griffin, on the other hand, has had many of them. What could have been the first regular-season meeting between he and Luck on Sunday will, presumably, carry on without one of the participants; Griffin, the backup to Colt McCoy, could enter the game in case of injury.

That’s not Luck’s problem. In a comfortable situation in Indianapolis, he can remain insulated, proceeding toward the end of the regular season and a looming AFC South title while concentrating on the ways to move the ball against the Redskins‘ defense.

“Right now, that’s his biggest concern,” Pagano said.

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