If you asked me last week if Andrew Luck deserved to start over Matt Hasselbeck, I probably would have said no. Luck has been nothing but a liability to the Indianapolis Colts this season, and with Hasselbeck under center they were actually winning a few games (which is all it takes to earn a playoff seed when you’re in the AFC South.
Maybe Luck heard me because he absolutely tore up the Denver Broncos and Wade Philips’ supposedly No. 1 defense, much to the chagrin of yours truly. Nothing makes me happier than watching Peyton Manning wipe the grin off Jim Irsay’s drunk, smug face. Sorry, I’m ranting again…
Anyways, just as Luck seemed to be getting into form, he’s sidelined with yet another injury, and he will be missing anywhere from two to six weeks with a torn ab and a kidney laceration suffered in the fourth quarter of the Broncos game, most likely on that hit by linebacker, Danny Trevathan.
“It is one heck of blow,” said head coach Chuck Pagano on losing Luck in the heat of the division race. “You don’t want to lose anybody, especially your starting quarterback. Our guys will respond like they always do. We’ve been through a ton already this season and in the past, and we’ll get through it. We’ll get through it.”
Fortunately for the 4-5 Colts, they are heading into a bye week before a matchup with the struggling Atlanta Falcons. That, and they are still sitting on top of their division with the Houston Texans as their only real “competition.”
40-year-old NFL veteran Matt Hasselbeck won both of his starts for the Colts earlier in the season when Luck was out with that shoulder injury, tossing for 495 yards and three touchdowns in his limited play-time this season.
“We have all the confidence in the world, and obviously we’re very fortunate to have Matt Hasselbeck as our backup quarterback,” said Pagano. “We’ve won with Matt. We’ll do the same thing, and certainly we will not put Andrew back out there again until he’s 100 percent healthy.”
At least the Colts actually reported this injury.