The AFC South used to get a great deal of grief for being one of the league’s weaker divisions, but that’s no longer the case. The division has managed to accumulate a lot of young talent over time, especially at the quarterback position, which consists of four starters who are all 30 years old or younger. To begin our positional previews around the division, here are our rankings of the AFC South’s four starting signal-callers:
4. Nick Foles, Jacksonville Jaguars
Foles is the newest addition to the AFC South’s group of starting signal-callers, and is the only one of the four to reach the Super Bowl and become the game’s MVP. Still, his career prior was so sporadic to the point where it’s hard to gauge him as a quarterback. That said, we slotted him at the No. 4 spot of our list.
Simply put, if the Jags get the Foles we’ve seen during the last two postseasons, they’re in good shape and will be able to do a lot of damage within the division. However, if they get the player he was prior, he may not be that much of an upgrade over Blake Bortles.
One key tidbit to take away from Foles’ ranking is the fact that he might have the best all-around team in the division by his side. For that reason, he doesn’t have to be the top quarterback in the division — just average, or above it.
3. Marcus Mariota, Tennessee Titans
Mariota’s 55 career starts is only one more than Foles has and the two have similar career stats as far as passing yards (Mariota’s 12,004 to Foles’ 11,165) touchdowns (69 to 68) and quarterback rating goes (89.4 to 88.5). However, the decision to put Mariota over Foles boils down to the talent they’ve had surrounding them.
Simply put, Mariota hasn’t had the weapons that Foles has over the course of his career, which leaves me to question if Mariota would be the better player if he had the pieces the Philadelphia Eagles had in place in 2017-18.
The Titans have only made it to the postseason once (in 2017) since Mariota has been their quarterback and they went 1-1 in the process. As average as Mariota has been, it’s highly unlikely that the Titans would’ve been able to have what little postseason success they’ve had without him so it goes without saying he’s a vital part to their franchise.
2. Deshaun Watson, Houston Texans
Ever since the Texans drafted Watson in 2017, they’ve been an improved offensive unit despite their offensive line issues. After returning from his ACL injury in 2018, he went 345-of-505 (68.3 percent) on the season while accumulating 4,165 passing yards, 26 passing touchdowns, and nine interceptions. He was also named to the Pro Bowl and was able to aid them to first place in the division, which included a sweep on the season for the Jags.
When looking at Watson’s potential, the only thing that is really holding him back is the Texans’ offensive line. If they can address that issue, it’s possible he could be the best quarterback in the AFC South as his mix of throwing skills and mobility are unmatched.
1. Andrew Luck, Indianapolis Colts
Luck missed the 2017 season due to shoulder surgery, but when he returned in 2018, he without a doubt reclaimed his spot as the AFC South’s top quarterback. Last season Luck looked like he never left the game accumulating a completion percentage of 67.3 for 4,593 passing yards (good for fifth in the league), 15 interceptions and 39 touchdowns (good for second). Those figures, of course, propelled the Colts offense to top-10 status and aided rookie head coach Frank Reich to a deep run into the playoffs.
Clearly, Luck is an irreplaceable part of the Colts organization, and we saw how the team fared without him in 2017 as they finished third in the division and was only able to accumulate four wins on the season. Additionally, the Jags were able to sweep them with ease throughout the process, but could only split the series when he returned. That fact in itself proves how valuable he is to Indy and their rivalry.
