■ Luck has been limited in practice the last two days with a sore shoulder and hasn’t done much more than hand the ball off. “I fully expect to play, ” Luck said when asked about Sunday’s game. Luck is considered day-to-day. Indianapolis coach Chuck Pagano said Wednesday he was confident Luck would be play against Jacksonville, but his tune seems to have changed. “If obviously you’re able to run the ball well, it opens up a lot more with play action and stuff like that, but as a quarterback you want to be able to have the passing game going no matter what’s going on with the running game”, Bortles said. Through three games this season, Luck has been hit 21 times, hurried 38 more and sacked on five occasions. He expects to play on Sunday.
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According to the Colts, it’s the first time Luck has been listed on the injury report since the end of his 2012 rookie season. Luck could be busy if history holds – he’s 5-1 against Jacksonville with 10 TDs, three INTs and a 98.6 passer rating – and the Colts studied Tom Brady’s outing against the Jaguars last week. Through three games, they have combined for 22 receptions, 498 yards and three touchdowns. Jacksonville upset the Miami Dolphins in Week 2 but came crashing back to Earth in last week’s 51-17 setback at the New England Patriots.
Chicago Bears quarterback Jay Cutler isn’t ruling out the possibility that he could play against the Oakland Raiders on Sunday.
“I took…”, Luck said, before pausing and laughing.
The Colts have tested Luck’s durability from the first time he stepped on the field in ’12. This game may be the boost that the Jacksonville defense needs, as they are dead last in the National Football League with just one forced turnover in 2015. Since realignment in 2002, Luck and Manning share the distinction as being the only quarterbacks to win 14 consecutive games against one division.
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Luck was hoping to be a full participant on Thursday’s practice. Go ahead and pat yourself on the back for that, but how in the world did they think that shit would work a second time? Indy also signed quarterback Alex Tanney to the practice squad Tuesday. He stated Wednesday that he had “supreme confidence” that Luck would play. Now, in what many say is a “Super Bowl or Bust” year, Hasselbeck could see his biggest role with the franchise, leading the Colts to their second win of the season. Now he is merely a role player for an Indianapolis team struggling to start the season.
