Andrew Luck retired…what now? How the Colts move on

The Colts have had to deal with the most shocking retirement from the NFL in the last 20 years, and possibly league history. What now?

Andrew Luck was supposed to be the savior of the franchise. He was supposed to replace Peyton Manning and be a generational quarterback that took the Colts to the playoffs for years on end. But that’s now how it ended up. The ending came far too soon.

Luck announced his retirement yesterday in a shock to everyone in and around the league. He was one of the best quarterbacks in the league, and retires two weeks before the regular season starts. Where does this leave the team he’s leaving behind?

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First off, it leaves the Colts worse. With Luck gone, it’s up to Jacoby Brissett to lead the way. He was expected to be the backup, but now he’s the starter. This also means that Chad Kelly or Phillip Walker will make the active roster as the backup.

Brissett needs to do what he does best. He can’t try to be Luck, because no one is. He has to go out there and play the best football he can his way. Brissett has a very strong arm, so he can make NFL throws. It’s all about doing that consistently while scanning reads quickly.

There have been times this preseason where Brissett has looked exceptionally sharp. But there have been times where he has looked overmatched. He needs the team around him to pick him up. T.Y. Hilton, Marlon Mack, Jack Doyle, and everyone else needs to be at the top of their game.

Long-term, this leaves the Colts with a lot of uncertainty. Brissett is a free agent at the end of the season. Luck’s retirement leave the Colts with even more cap space than they had before, which was still a lot. But now they need to find the next franchise quarterback.

Brissett will have his chance to take that role this season. If he plays really well, the Colts will extend him and give him the keys to run the team. If he doesn’t they will likely be drafting a quarterback either in 2020, when Tua Tagovaila and Justin Herbert will be entering, or in 2021 when Trevor Lawrence enters.

Big changes are ahead for this franchise. With only two weeks before the season starts, they don’t have any time to think about things. They have to hit the ground running. It’s too bad the ground has been shaking underneath them since 9:20pm Saturday night.