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Former Indianapolis Colts quarterback turned Stanford GM is coming to terms with his playing career.
In a recent interview with Zak Keefer of The Athletic, Luck fully admitted to feeling guilty about retiring early from the game in 2019.
Upon reflection, Luck said that while he didn't regret his decision, he regretted it's after effects.
“I’ll always have guilt about how it ended,” Luck says. “I let my teammates down.”
In August 2019, Luck retired from the game at the age of 29. He attributed his decision to a series of injuries and a lack of desire to play. Among the injuries were a ruptured kidney, torn abdominal muscles, and a damaged throwing shoulder.
With the Colts, Luck had constructed a home only a few minutes from the team's practice facility. He had envisioned being there full-time and raising his family. Plus, Luck had envisioned donning a couple of Super Bowl rings, but to no avail.
“I was gonna play until I was 40 or 45,” he says. “You think you’re invincible. At least I did.”
What kept him going through all the physical pain was wanting to play with his teammates. It was something Luck intended to follow through on just as he did when he played QB at Stanford.
Luck had forgone his chance to be a No.1 draft pick to stay an extra year in 2011. All because of one thing, his teammates, as he told then coach David Shaw.
“I gotta finish with my guys.” he said.
The brief stint of Andrew Luck as the QB of the Colts
Altogether, Luck played seven seasons with the Colts 2012-2019. During that time, he threw for 23,671 yards and had 171 touchdowns.
His first year was history filled. Luck set a rookie record with 4,374. Additionally, he had six games in which he threw for 300 yards or more.
During Week 16, Luck set an NFL rookie record with 433 passing yards in a single game against the Miami Dolphins. The Colts went onto win 23-20.
Also, Luck was selected for four Pro Bowls. In 2018, Luck was named the NFL Comeback Player of the Year after returning from a shoulder injury that forced him out the season before.
He threw for 4,593 yards and had 39 touchdowns as the Colts went 10-6 all the way to the playoffs.
