Doom and gloom dominate the storylines regarding Andrew Luck’s future, and the latest report adds some more bad news.
Andrew Luck‘s injury status has been a daily story across the league lately as questions abound regarding his status for the regular season.
With each day that Luck is unable to throw a football, let alone step on a practice field, Colts fans are filled with more anxiety.
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The last time Luck spoke with the media, he was non-committal about his status for Week 1, and steered clear from giving a guarantee that he would be able to play.
The latest report from Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports cites “rumblings” that Luck may be forced to begin the regular season on the physically unable to perform (PUP) list.
Clayton Geathers has already been placed on the regular season PUP list, which will keep him sidelined for at least the first six games.
La Canfora explains in the article that he would “bet against” Luck missing any regular season games, and writes that an addition to the PUP list would be a worse-case scenario.
However, the Colts are being extremely cautious in bringing him back from offseason shoulder surgery.
"“We want to make sure we handle the process right with Andrew, and continuing to do the things the doctors and trainers have told him to do, and we’re going to follow that process,” Ballard told La Canfora. “And as for everyone saying Andrew is down, well, every season is special in my mind, You don’t ever want to take these for granted. They’re too hard to come by. So we’ll do everything we can to put a team on the field that will compete their butts off and play winning football. He’s going through his throwing program right now, making sure he’s got his motion back right and the next step is getting him to practice. And once we get him to practice we’ll keep taking steps from there.”"
Head coach Chuck Pagano is in concert with his general manager on how carefully they are treating the situation.
"“Right when the doctors say he’s ready to roll, then that’s the date,” Pagano said. “There is no timeline. It was yesterday for all of us, but that’s not really the case. So these things take time, and it’s a process. Our trainers are doing a great job and Andrew is doing a great job. We’re going to listen to those guys, but the last thing we want to do is rush him or any of our players back too soon and have a setback. So we’re going to be diligent in the process.”"
Scott Tolzien, Stephen Morris, and Phillip Walker will handle all of the quarterback reps in camp until Luck is able to return.
Tolzien has three career starts, including a blowout loss to the Steelers last season. Morris and Walker have yet to play in an NFL game.
The future remains cloudy for Luck, but the Colts have avoided a doomsday scenario thus far.