A football helmet of an Indianapolis Colts players sits on the field during warm-up before a NFL football game against the Philadelphia Eagles in Indianapolis, Sunday, Nov. 26, 2006.
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He was the catalyst to the three consecutive playoff appearances after the franchise bottomed out in 2011.
He’s coming off an injury-plagued, turnover-marred ’15 that saw the team fail to make the playoffs and after which outsiders began to question whether he had been over-hyped.
Owner Jim Irsay gave Luck a six-year, $140 million contract, which includes $87 million in guaranteed money, on June 29. He’ll be paid almost $140 million over the next six seasons. “I have some thoughts, but I don’t want to share them”.
“I’ve always had high expectations and probably higher than others”, Luck said. [There’s] pressure from your coach, pressure from your teammates, your close friends and family. “I never got too caught up in that”.
For Luck, things couldn’t have gone much worse last season. The Colts had a 2-5 record in the games he played in. Bovada has him tied with Arizona’s Carson Palmer for sixth among preseason MVP candidates at 12/1.
Indianapolis Colts defensive lineman Arthur Jones blames himself for the failed drug test that led to a four-game suspension. Not this year. Though players and coaches have nearly universally taken the words “Super” and “Bowl” out of their vocabulary, they acknowledge the goal remains unchanged: bringing home the Lombardi Trophy.
Training camp will play a crucial role in getting the offense to gel as a unit – and most importantly, creating that “grit” that Coach Pagano always talks about.
It’s a critical time for the team’s development, and even the youngest players are ready to get to work. Just drive, Andrew Luck says, and stay driven.
Jones missed all of 2015 with an injured left ankle and seven games in 2014 with an injured right ankle. He’s also the highest paid player in the NFL.
“Maybe a little more motivation coming off of past year because of not just the injury but not just doing as well as you would’ve liked, ” he said. You are talking about a kid with tremendous talent, tremendous mobility, tremendous size, very good arm, super-high IQ, and an alarming self-awareness… It’s not too short where you think, “Oh my gosh, we’re already here.’ And it’s not too long where you’re in the vehicle brooding”.
“Every year it’s a little different”.
Offensive coordinator Pep Hamilton was sacked and replaced by Chudzinski. A memorable sideline moment from a Week 3 road win at Tennessee showed Luck wince in pain when Matt Hasselbeck patted him on the chest. He must move on without former Stanford friends/teammates Coby Fleener and Griff Whalen.
Wide receiver T.Y. Hilton agreed.
“Oh, absolutely, ” he said. “Especially with him being down past year, he started talking more and being more into the game. Just to have him back brings a lot of smiles to a lot of faces”. Luck is playing in his third offensive system in five years. I’m not going to get into too much detail over that. I know I’ve been definitely more vocal as the years have gone on and maybe felt like if my opinion needs to be heard, I don’t hesitate in making sure it’s said.
“To me, it’s not a burden in any sense. And as far as pressure from the outside, I think pressure is a privilege”, he explained. Entering 2016, Luck made it clear that he and the rest of the team have a chip on their shoulder.
Throughout training camp, the Colts are hosting themed days.
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There was already the pressure of living up to the fact that Luck was not only the Colts’ No. 1 draft pick in 2012 but also the first overall pick that year.
