Andrew Luck never thought about returning to football

Andrew Luck was back in Indianapolis on Friday evening. He said he never thought about returning to football.

“When I retired, that was part of it put to bed in my head in a very simple, direct way,” Luck said, via Joal A. Erickson of the Indianapolis Star. “There was a lot of complications, you know, certainly tormented inside, as you saw that night, but I think some of it remained.”

Luck abruptly retired in August 2019, just days before his 30th birthday. He was in his prime. And he loved the game.

“It gives you purpose, it gives you structure,” Luck said. “You’re on a team. I think you find some, you know, it taps into a deep need for relationship, community, purpose and hard work. . . .
There are parts of it that you miss. You can’t repeat that in your life.”

He returns now as he nears his 35th birthday. And he believes he has a debt to repay despite only playing seven seasons in the NFL.

“Football has given me a lot,” said Luck. “A lot. Most importantly, again, are the relationships and experiences with people that I loved. . . . I think part of me feels, and I don't mean that in a cheesy way, but part of me feels like It’s my turn to give something back to this game.”

It's almost as if he waited to reappear until he was sure he no longer had the desire to return. No temptation to come back. No pressure to play again, for the Colts or anyone else.

If Friday night's performance in Indianapolis was part of his effort to “give something back to the game,” he's apparently confident the game won't captivate him again.

He could still play if he wanted. He was in the same draft class as Russell Wilson and Kirk Cousins ​​and is younger than them. Ryan Tannehill, also a first-round pick in 2012, will likely end up somewhere at some point.

Apparently luck won't do it. Although he entered the league four years after Joe Flacco, the current replacement for Colts starter Anthony Richardson. Even if he could still play.

Whatever reasons Luck resigned from, they were very strong. Strong enough to overcome his love for the game and his desire to be a part of it.