Getty Former Indianapolis Colts linebacker D'Qwell Jackson shares how valuable he thinks Andrew Luck would be if he returned to the NFL.
Quarterback Andrew Luck abruptly retired from the Indianapolis Colts during the 2019 preseason. At the time, he was just 29 years old.
Retiring at such a young age has caused a lot of NFL fans and even members of the media to wonder if Luck would return to football as a player at some point. The fact that the Colts are still trying to replace him sometimes helps fuel rumors of a Luck comeback as well.
If Luck did return to the NFL, former Colts linebacker D’Qwell Jackson left little doubt that the quarterback would be in high demand.
“If Andrew Luck put out a word today that he wanted to come back, all 32 teams would reevaluate who their starting quarterback is,” Jackson said on the sixth episode of The Andrew Luck Podcast from staff writer Zak Keefer of The Athletic. “Without a doubt, without a doubt.
“Not many people can say that. Once you leave the game for a period of time, no matter how great you were, it’s like ‘Eh, no. It sounds great, but we’re going to pass.’ But not [with] Andrew. Not Andrew.”
In 86 career games, Luck posted a 53-33 record. He averaged 275 passing yards per game and threw 171 touchdowns versus 83 interceptions. In 2018, he won the NFL Comeback Player of the Year award.
But despite the potentially high demand, Keefer and the people he interviewed close to Luck implied the quarterback is not going to return to football.
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Luck Still Has Fire, Intensity and a Love for Football
Keefer talked to numerous sources for the six-part Andrew Luck podcast series, which is available for free on Apple podcasts. Two interviewers featured prominently towards the end of the podcast series were Luck’s former college coach at Stanford David Shaw, and his former college teammate, current Stanford offensive coordinator Tavita Pritchard.
Shaw described Luck as the same 17-year-old kid that he recruited who’s still in love with football. Pritchard shared that sentiment, revealing that Luck has the same fire and intensity when he shows up to Stanford practices as he did during his playing days.
Could that mean Luck misses football?
Not necessarily because he doesn’t show up to practice every day like he used to. Pritchard called Luck a “very present” person, describing him as someone who is great at being in the place or conversation where he is in the moment.
“If he’s out there [at practice], then yeah, he wants to know what the play call is, he wants to know how we’re reading it,” Pritchard said on The Andrew Luck Podcast. “But like, that also doesn’t mean he wants to get back into it. It just means he decided to be at practice, and boy, he’s going to be at practice that day.”
Stanford practices are not the only place where Luck appears back on the football field. Colts reporter Stephen Holder of ESPN reported Luck made an appearance at a training session organized by former teammate Robert Mathis on July 13.
Looks like Andrew Luck dropped by Robert Mathis’ training session today up in Westfield, Ind.
Credit: Mathis’ Instagram account.
(Guys: Please don’t ask me if he’s coming back. He was there to talk to some youth football players).
Keefer also said on the sixth episode of the podcast series that Luck continues to watch the Colts and stay in touch with his former teammates.
Luck at Peace With His Football Career
Fans can suggest Luck is thinking about returning to football for a number of reasons. But there doesn’t seem to be anything between the lines about Luck being at a practice or talking to former teammates.
Shaw agreed with Pritchard, saying Luck is at peace “about the football part of his life” and “comfortable” with how his playing career went. Shaw added that the next challenge for Luck is deciding what to do next.
Fellow NFL quarterback Robert Griffin III interviewed Luck at the Alabama-Georgia National Championship matchup between Alabama and Georgia. Griffin, who beat out Luck for the 2011 Heisman Trophy and was drafted second behind Luck in the 2012 NFL Draft, told Keefer that Luck is having fun just being a Dad.
“He seems to be beyond happy, out of the spotlight,” Griffin said. “That was never something that he was always entirely comfortable with. So now he just kind of gets to be a Dad and live the Dad life and tell Dad jokes.”
Keefer also interviewed Luck before releasing his podcast series. While the interview has been kept off the record, Keefer revealed that a comeback does not appear to be in the cards for Luck.
“My takeaway from our hour and a half chat was this — his football career very much felt in the past tense. It was apparent, he had moved on,” Keefer said. “He was excited about what’s coming next and at no point during our conversation did I ever get the feeling that a comeback was something he ever seriously considered.”
Listen to Keefer’s entire podcast series on Luck’s early retirement.