Andrew Luck , QB, Indianapolis - Round 1, Pick 1

FOR: Luck has been phenomenal for the Colts this season. No two ways about it. There is no easy way to fill the shoes of a living legend like Peyton Manning. That alone deserves recognition in and of itself. The quality of that character is further bolstered by the fact he's lead the league in bringing the Colts to seven comeback wins. When your team goes from 2-14 to 11-5, that's not something that can be taken lightly.

Some draftniks questioned if he'd ever have an arm capable of the deeper throws he wasn't asked to make at Stanford. He's answered that with aplomb. He's been asked to make more deep throws than any of his draft class have been asked to do and generated more passing yards than any rookie quarterback has ever done before.

This is a guy who can lead the Colts for as long as they decide they want him.

AGAINST: Volume. If his peers are making a number of throws on a scale of 1-10, Luck has been throwing all the way up to 11. More pass attempts than Aaron Rodgers, Peyton Manning and Matt Ryan? We can blame interim coach Bruce Arians, we can blame the defense, but the truth probably lies somewhere between the two. There's certainly enough culpability to go around.

When you're relying on volume for productive numbers, it can suggest the overall quality isn't quite there, yet. For example, if you have two running backs that are 1,000-yard runners, do you want the one who can do it on 200 carries (5 yards per carry) or the one that needs 400 (2.5 yards per carry). Right.

Now, no one is saying -- least of all me -- that Luck is the equivalent of a 2.5 yards per carry running back, but his yardage needs to be put into context. His passing accuracy is less than 60 percent (the benchmark that you look for in a quarterback) in every yardage category from 1-yard screens all the way up to the 50-yard plus bombs. One is obviously more worrying than the other.

He's currently ranked 31st in the league for passing accuracy, below Matt Cassel, Blaine Gabbert and Mark Sanchez.

When you throw, rush or get targeted with high volumes it'll amplify any positives or negatives in your game. From what I've seen, Luck has struggled badly versus relentless pressure from defensive coordinators this year. Normally that wouldn't be a problem; it's part and parcel of the rookie quarterback learning curve and should be dismissed as growing pains. That Colts offensive line has two good pieces on it, but they aren't...

Happy New Year! May the New Year bring prosperity and joy to auld you acquaintance with. This time of the year I celebrate two noteworthy items. I transfer writing jobs from fantasy football to prognostication. And I now get to say we are in the teens. Next comes the 20s, 30s etc. All is right in the numeric world when it comes to generational conversation.

A Tale Of Two Cities

Out of the playoffs are the familiar teams of the New Orleans Saints & the New York Giants. New teams in are the likes of the Redskins and Colts. Welcome to the dance gentlemen, now watch how hard it is to two-step your way through this tournament.

This year's wild card story has all of the drama associated with the hot and the not so hot. In the not so hot category, you have the Houston Texans which went from having every game go through Houston to out of the bye week. That would be the Penthouse to the Outhouse for a team that was 11-1 until the Patriots smooshed them 42-14 on Monday Night December 10th. The difference between 12-4 and 15-1 is only three games but Houston is trending down.

The teams trending in the other direction all had to win to get in the last several weeks of the season. That would be the likes of the Bengals, the Seahawks and the Redskins. The only in-between but still trending upward are the Green Bay Packers. They want to win in the playoffs to get rid of the loss they had at home last year.

Let us look at the games this weekend, shall we?

I Am Hosting a Playoff Game and I am 7-9! WooHoo!

The Wildcard weekend has four games. It all begins with the trending down Houston Texans hosting the Cincinnati Bengals. The Bengals have a balanced team and Houston was firing on all cylinders until the last four weeks. I think that the Houston fans will rally the team and Houston will celebrate a home victory in the playoffs.

Next up on Saturday will be the Minnesota Vikings at the Green Bay Packers. These teams played the last week of the season in Minnesota and the Vikings pulled out the victory to get into the playoffs. How the Vikings do it is very admirable and old school relying on the running of Adrian Peterson. They seem to still win even though they rarely throw the ball downfield. What is up with that? The Green Bay Packers have something to prove. Look for Green Bay to move on.

The Indianapolis Colts travel to Baltimore to face the Baltimore Ravens and their new high flying offense. It has flown somewhere in the middle. Meanwhile, rookie...

We offer a quick look back on the 2012 season by presenting a team of players that were not selected on draft day but enjoyed a high level of fantasy success. The list includes players that emerged at various points during the season and performed at a high enough level to be fantasy starters. Some of the most proficient players on this list emerged after the midway point of the season, proof that checking the waiver wire is crucial during the entire fantasy campaign.

This will be the final installment of this year's "Waiver Wire" series, it has been my pleasure to put pen to paper, or more appropriately, finger to keyboard. Thank you for reading all season!

Quarterback

Russell Wilson, Seattle

While fellow rookies Robert Griffin III and Andrew Luck got most of the headlines, Wilson has performed at a level just under those two players all season. His elevation to being the starter for the Seahawks was not solidified until just before the opening game of the regular season, which kept most fantasy owners away on draft day. His battle with Matt Flynn went down to the wire. Though he did outplay Flynn, it was Flynn's injury late in the preseason that created a chance for Wilson to get onto the field. After a slow start, Wilson's success got on solid ground during a Week 8 matchup against the Detroit Lions where he threw for 236 yards and a pair of touchdowns. That game kicked off a stretch where he averaged more than 200 yards and two touchdowns per game. Those that were lucky enough to start him in Week 15 also enjoyed three touchdown scores on the ground. Through 16 weeks, Wilson is one of the Top 15 fantasy quarterbacks and will surely be heard from again as a solid fantasy player in 2014.

Colin Kaepernick, San Francisco

After getting some scattered spot duty in relief of an injured Alex Smith, coach Jim Harbaugh made a bold move midseason, elevating Kaepernick to starter over a healthy Smith. This was quite a statement, given that Kaepernick struggled in the preseason to nail down the position of QB2 on the 49ers depth chart. Kaepernick got the start against the Chicago Bears on Monday night in Week 11 and he did not disappoint, throwing for 243 yards and two touchdowns. His running ability was an added bonus; on weeks when he was not passing for 200-plus yards he was running for 50-plus yards and scoring on the ground. His best game was at New England during Week 15 where he threw for four touchdowns. San Francisco is already talking...