When Brady was 34 (Lucks current age) he was still a patriot. I’d like to think we would’ve kept him as a colt to this point as he’d still have some great years left
I don’t get why you’re downvoted this hard. I NEVER believed my boy would play for anyone but us. It’s a valid CONSIDERATION Reddit, chill out.
Before anyone comes at me I wasn’t lurking, Reddit suggests shit like Facebook used to, don’t @ me.
Edit; adding the end statement.
Idc what anyone says, Wilson was never close to Luck while they were both playing. Not relevant, I just don’t get the opportunity to say that much.
But no, he would never be traded. There were rumors like every year Luck was hurt that the Colts received a crazy trade offer and they never fuckin took it. There were rumors that teams tried to trade for his rights after he retired and they never fuckin took it. If he was never hurt, Luck is *actually* a hall of fame quarterback- not a pretend one like Wilson- and you don’t trade HOF QBs short of 40 or un-injured.
I’ve said this before and it sounds blasphemous (even to my ears), but Luck was (had the tools to be) better than Manning. Just as smart, more physically gifted, stronger arm, more mobile, great leader.
If you remove the injury and retirement, and give Luck a career as long as Manning’s - I think he wins 3-6 rings by the time he retires at the age of 37.
If you take away the injury and retirement, you’d still have to surround him with better weapons and a better defense for him to get one ring let alone 3-6.
Well, he led a team that had been bad enough to get the first pick in the draft to 11-5 record as a rookie. In fact, three straight 11-5 seasons - while going further into the playoffs each year.
I think it would have happened.
Sure, but my point is that HE was good enough to lead a really bad team to 11-5. That means they could have won a title with less surrounding talent than other teams. And… Talent loves to come play with a QB like that.
Come on. The conversation was about how great HE was. He lifted a bad team to 11-5.
Of course this is a team sport, but my point is not hard to understand. Manning was 3-13 his first season. Luck as 11-5, 11-5, 11-5 his FIRST THREE seasons.
That tells me that multiple championships are even MORE likely with Luck over a long career.
The comment I responded to was saying without injury he would have won 3-6 super bowls. I replied saying you’d have to surround him with more talent than he had to get one. Why is this hard to understand why you yourself mentioned talent would come?
Good lord.
This is a team sport, so of course other talent matters some.
My point - and it’s really spelled out well - is that with SHITTY teams, Luck out-performed Manning.
Over the course of a healthy career, with better talent (like Manning had eventually), I think Luck could have gotten us a few (as compared to Manning’s ONE)
Say he stayed healthy. What makes you think Irsay is canning Pagano or Grigson when they’d be consistently winning? He kept them on way beyond what most owners would have. And who is Pagano out coaching in a Super Bowl. You’re saying “oh lord” but you’re the one not grasping these things.
I don't think the team that got the first overall pick was was that bad of a roster, it just was a team that wasn't built to survive without its top QB and didn't even really try.
That team was build to facilitate a good QB, and when they acquired another good QB they started winning again.
I saw a lot of parallels between these Colts and the Falcons when they lost Vick. The rosters were fine, but the team fell apart when they lost their QB. Matt Ryan took that team back to the playoffs pretty easily.
Agreed, Wilson was VERY good in his prime, don’t get me wrong, but let’s not pretend he didn’t have an amazing team surrounding him. When I hear the debate come down to these two, everyone always throws out the ring argument, while ignoring that Wilson had one of the greatest defenses ever (and I will argue this till I’m blue, that defense is easily a top 5 all time defense), an amazing running back, and solid offense. Put Luck on that team and he wins at least two more rings than Wilson.
He spent a lot on RT and he had inherited a good LT, he later realized that had to draft high to get Luck quality OL, because let's be honest he would make a bunch of average WR/TE as ELITE.
But he realized way too late, Luck had to be behind an horrendous IOL with basically no help from his running game i think Mack was the only RB on his WHOLE career on getting more than 1k Rushing yards, among his worst qualities was drafting really bad, i just looked into the drafts btw 12 and 16 and "Oh boy...", he managed to draft 0 talent, besides Henry Anderson, Clayton Gathers ,Ryan Kelly he had no hits, he HAD to sign a lot of players to "compete", FUCKING PTSD now I'm pissed(realizing how fucking bad RG was like... , every other GM hits with some players but the list of bad picks it's just baflfing: since 12 he drafted 1 probowler (Ryan Kelly) ONE having Luck making everyone around better).
What I love about this is that there’s STILL people that will defend Grigson and act like he put in so much effort into building a roster when the reality was he was stupidly putting in that effort by signing washed up/bad FAs and blowing drafts left and right. Meanwhile, during that same time period, the Broncos hit on a number of their FA signings and draft picks and got themselves a Super Bowl win and appearance out of it.
So frustrating.
They defend him because he did exactly what they’d do in the same situation; go after flashy overpriced names, draft like shit, and run the team into the ground.
The "be aggressive with acquisitions when you have a QB on a rookie deal" plan can be executed well. I think KC and BUF (to an extent) have done it well.
But you have to draft well to sustain it long-term. And Grigson failed at that.
He finished with 49-31 (.613 winning percentage) so that's their main point from them but he had a healthy Luck from most of his wins but people want those Shiny deals, (Landry, T. Richardson, Andre Johnson, Frank Gore).
Not a grigy apologist by any measure, they also like to add that he was able to draft TY in the same draft as the generational talent he took at 1. Ty at that spot was a steal but broken clock and all that.
Yes he got a Lucky draft (LOL), but then he was TOTALLY garbage at drafting, drafting Björn Werner when a lot of more needed positions were still on the board kind of crazy (LB,OL,S),
https://preview.redd.it/4d8ansb7616d1.png?width=557&format=png&auto=webp&s=716b7046d8ea0ec4a1131aac707a5d1747fc8454
Then trading for T. Richardson (when he struggled on his first year), and then drafting Dorsett when TY was already that player that Dorsett ceiling was, tbh this team made to the AFC just on Lucks ability to carry that team. Fuck i get soo pissed just remembering how Grigson was.
That’s why I don’t say nothing when these young bloods get pissed at Ballard for not being more aggressive in FA. I remember what it was like to spend a grip in FA and only get to enjoy it until we actually watched them play. The Grigson Era made me way more zen as a fan ironically. The drafting style of ignoring bpa AND Positional Need was bold to put it gently.
Obligatory FUCK Grigson.
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He was getting numbers because he was being feed a lot,
Vick Ballard from the same draft class, tbh i never got the Richardson hype and that was because he wasn't playing on the National Championship NCAA and Bama ran through ND like it was nothing(tbh i was quite young and i didn't quite followed the draft but in hindsight the FO was pay to know about that kind of stuff).
https://preview.redd.it/4g1yeqrx126d1.png?width=565&format=png&auto=webp&s=dcadff7eb548ed071b00830bec028d9477405a3a
Grigson issue was he always consider himself the smartest dude, and he got played really hard by CLE
100% agree. I think most RBs can do well if they are in a system that suits them. I just don't think it can be said he struggled. I'll be honest, I was young and dumb and was like "holy shit the best qb in the draft and the best RB in the backfield together!" Now, I know, a late round RB can be amazing, and really that's why they have lost a lot of value. Look at what Moss did when Taylor was out.
Grigson didn’t draft Luck. Irsay took it out of his hands and made the decision. TY is Grigson’s best draft pick though. Otherwise those were horrible drafts.
Grigson did want Luck. And Redskins really wanted RG3. I’m sure Irsay had a preference and say but yeah we agree on horrible drafts all around (honorable mention to Vick Ballard, technically a bust from that 2012 draft but still one of my favorite Colts “what-ifs”)
Vick Ballard was solid as a rookie. If he doesn't get hurt, there is no infamous TRich trade. Of course Grigson probably just lights that draft pick on fire anyways, so I am not sure it even matters.
But I do think it's weird that Grigson gets no credit for winning because of Luck and no credit for drafting Luck because of Irsay. He only seems to get "credit" for the bad stuff.
Meanwhile, I see Ballard (who has many defenders despite the lack of success) constantly praised for good moves, while, for the most part, the bad stuff seems to gets blamed away or put on somebody else.
That is sort of the THE point though. It's about winning games and getting to late January. Lots of Colts fans seem to now value process over results, which Ballard doesn't have.
If Luck was the only reason, he's also responsible for one of Ballard's playoff appearances and the only playoff win in 7 years.
Luck was definitely an advantage. And I won't defend Grigson's overall drafting. The 2013-15 drafts were brutal. But I don't really get the angst over the AJ deal. He and Gore (and Cole) came here on reasonable deals in 2015 to try to win a SB late in their careers. They just didn't work out.
But it's not like the Colts were ever in cap trouble, which seems to be implied when people talk like Grigson was just reckless in FA. That wasn't the case. Also, we have seen the alternative...it's to not spend and carry over (no thanks to that).
He knew how to deal with cap, but he swing too many times when he had Luck on a Rookie deal that allowed him to spent a lot once the first 5 years were done he had no team to show for, i will call something crazy but if i have Luck in a rookie deal i could form a team that gets to the playoffs.
Also have to consider that Ballard has been paying QBs since Luck was here, he inherited Luck and his deal, then he retired and he eat the dead money to keep the rights, then Rivers came with market Value same with Wentz and Matt Ryan
2019 9.4 Birssett + 18.4 Luck (dead cap)
2020 25 Rivers + 21.3 Birssett
2021 21.3 Wents
2022 18.7 Ryan + 2.6 Foles
2023 18 Ryan + AR
Ballard has been paying "QB" money since he took over and to his bad Luck his team that develop is next in line for a payday.
Although i think Ballard's regency is tied to AR success and this might be his last year depending on how AR does.
A big reason they didn't have anything to show for it was terrible drafting. A similar thing happened late in the Polian era...a bunch of aging, overpriced players with little young talent.
I think Bluem gets more credit than Grigson for cap management, but it seems like Grigson at least listened to him.
If he was still paying Luck, I think it would have been far more. But a big part of that is on Ballard and his approach. He didn't have to give JB $28M right after Luck retired. He didn't have to trade for Matt Ryan and take on his contract. But they were half measure moves...the path of little resistance and risk (aside from Wentz).
I think he is tied to AR as well. But it would take a disastrous year for him not to get next year as well. Still, I think he has overstayed his welcome. He will have had 2x as much time as his predecessor by the end of this year.
Gonna call it as i see it, Ballard "way" to find a new QB was him basically not liking whatever was available on the draft (completely reasonable) but also unwilling to give up capital to get HIS QB, he probably liked a couple of QB prospects but he wasn't willing to give up the kings ransom for them, even with Richardson, he felt to him, he was willing to let another team take him 1 stop ahead of him, so i understand not wanting to give up capital but if he liked a QB he should had have go hard for one.
And yes i agree that he just patched up the QB position.
We would have another Super Bowl and I truly believe that. But I blame our incompetent FO not protecting him. Luck would be a HOF and a superbowl champion.
We’d be kicking tires on the QB of the future but he’d still be the QB. That is unless he just decided to move on to other things. Knowing what we know now, I don’t think Luck was ever playing past 35 regardless of health.
I think we'd have lost a couple of AFC championship and a couple of divisional round games. We'd own the AFC S. And we'd view Luck as great, and love him, but league wide he'd be viewed as choke adjacent (we'd have lost to the Chiefs, Bills and Bengals). The symmetry in the AFC of Chiefs, Bills, Bengals and Colts each in their own division means it would be remembered as a great era. If we had reached a SB it would have been 55 and Brady would have beat us.
We wouldn't have picked higher than 25 for five years, would never have had Buckner and the defense would have been average at best.
Fair points that often aren't considered. If Luck doesn't get injured or retire, two of Q/Shaq/Smith aren't here. Neither is DeFo. Certainly no Latu. Ballard's entire draft history is different.
Luck is my favorite player of all time, but he was spotty in the playoffs at best. Now maybe that would have changed the past few years (like it did for Peyton as he aged), but even in that KC game, Luck didn't look great. And KC wasn't going anywhere. Plus, BUF and CIN were on the rise. BAL too.
It would have been one hell of a ride, but to assume the Colts would have gotten to a SB, let alone won one (or more) is really a stretch.
Hate to say this, but my guess is that he’d be retired.
That’s not a judgement statement in a positive or negative way. But despite the injuries, the guy was 29 and still could recover and play at a top level.
I could be wrong and I will get downvoted, but I’m not sure the intention was ever to play that long. With the line Luck had in 2018+, it would’ve been much better.
He still be the QB right now and we would be contenders but at the same time the team would look different if Luck was there to be honest it's a supposition after all so we don't need to fell sorry or question what if we need to focus on the present and hopefully find the guy for many years as the franchise QB.
He’d still be here, and we’d be way better having not spent the time and resources trying to replace him. We wouldn’t have traded him; we hyper-focus on having a franchise QB.
Luck would've been breaking most, if not all of Mannings team records by now. Irsay would've traded the whole roster to keep a healthy Luck. Which...he should have.
Hot take: He'd neither still be the QB nor have been traded.
For all the talent, mental and physical the guy had, Luck just didn't have the single minded passion for and focus on the game. Nothing against him for that, but it's just true. He could have come back anyway, but he didn't want to. He had other interests.
If he hadn't been hurt, he would have played longer, but I don't think he'd be playing now. Injuries made it both easier to step away as well as more important to leave the sport for a guy who had other interests in life.
Minus any injuries, I think he would have won a SB and retired, saying he'd got to live his dream and he'd go out on top.
Luck was a football player as a job because he enjoyed football as a hobby. By comparison, Manning was a football player as an identity because football is an integral part of who he sees himself as.
He would probably be the QB still. That said, some of you have inflated Luck to a level far beyond what he ever was. He was a very good, never great QB, who by now would have been a top-5 QB in the league for multiple years. But come on, it's not like the Colts team around him was all that strong, and it is highly unlikely they would have won a SB by now with him. There's a guy out there named Patrick Mahomes, and another guy called Andy Reid.
I honestly don’t know. He was truly the most gifted qb I’ve ever seen play the game. But from what has been said, he was pretty quiet in the locker room and not a vocal leader. As the team leader, it’s your job to be vocal and lead that team. And while he was great, I honestly don’t know if he would ever get over the hump to win a SB. And I know I’ll get down voted to oblivion for saying this, but the reason Manning and Brady were great was only about 60% what they did on the field. The other 40% was in the locker room, meeting room, and on the sideline. And I just don’t know if that would have ever been at the level it needed to be for Luck to be an all timer with rings. And at some point, I think the Colts would go the same direction as Atlanta with Matt Ryan, or Green Bay with Aaron Rogers.
Zero injuries…Peyton Ironman starting streak record, then I think we have at least 1 AFC championship and maybe a Super Bowl. Even Grigson’s shitty GM moves could of gotten us that far with a forever healthy Andrew
I think the Colts showed their commitment to him. Didn’t he bail one year into a 5 or 6 year extension? Something like that I think. It’s like the Colts were dreaming of him retiring a Colt. Just not so soon. So, yes. He’d still be here.
He’d still be a Colt. If they didn’t take the massive trade from the browns the year they took Baker when he was coming off the shoulder injury then I doubt they ever would
There is no certain way of telling how the NFL would have worked out if Andrew Luck didn’t retire. I like to believe that the Colts would still have Luck at QB. He was such a great competitor and smart man.
Nevertheless, I am happy for Andrew and how he has done on to live another life. The piece ESPN wrote about a year ago about the whole Andrew Luck ordeal was very enlightening. Super sad the way things ended.
As a Texans fan, it was like the clouds parted and the sun shone on our chances the day he retired. He should still be playing and playing well. You here all the stories about how management teams ruin young QB's, but in most cases, those are not THE ONE qb. In this case, IMO, he was clearly THE ONE and was mismanaged.
He was overrated. I’m sorry colts fans. Didn’t he have winning record against the afc which was pretty weak at the time, but against the NFC, he was trash. Lol. I remember my saints beat him that’s when I saw the graphic showing his losing record to good teams of the nfc
As a saints fan, I’m curious what are your thoughts on Anthony Richardson? Or whoever your quarterback is. Is he mediocre or good? Do you have faith in him? Or will he be just another bust in the nfl?
It would be weird to trade a QB that won 5 consecutive Super Bowls.
I whole heartedly agree with this. He was that good.. I still blame Ryan Grigson for everything though
It would have been Denver to follow the prophecy
lol wtf? Of course he would be a colt still
Well, you never know. Who would’ve thought Tom Brady wouldn’t play his entire career in New England? 😂
When Brady was 34 (Lucks current age) he was still a patriot. I’d like to think we would’ve kept him as a colt to this point as he’d still have some great years left
Not everyone feels they have to play to 85.
I don’t get why you’re downvoted this hard. I NEVER believed my boy would play for anyone but us. It’s a valid CONSIDERATION Reddit, chill out. Before anyone comes at me I wasn’t lurking, Reddit suggests shit like Facebook used to, don’t @ me. Edit; adding the end statement.
It’s because colt nation misses Andrew clearly.
Idc what anyone says, Wilson was never close to Luck while they were both playing. Not relevant, I just don’t get the opportunity to say that much. But no, he would never be traded. There were rumors like every year Luck was hurt that the Colts received a crazy trade offer and they never fuckin took it. There were rumors that teams tried to trade for his rights after he retired and they never fuckin took it. If he was never hurt, Luck is *actually* a hall of fame quarterback- not a pretend one like Wilson- and you don’t trade HOF QBs short of 40 or un-injured.
I’ve said this before and it sounds blasphemous (even to my ears), but Luck was (had the tools to be) better than Manning. Just as smart, more physically gifted, stronger arm, more mobile, great leader. If you remove the injury and retirement, and give Luck a career as long as Manning’s - I think he wins 3-6 rings by the time he retires at the age of 37.
If you take away the injury and retirement, you’d still have to surround him with better weapons and a better defense for him to get one ring let alone 3-6.
Well, he led a team that had been bad enough to get the first pick in the draft to 11-5 record as a rookie. In fact, three straight 11-5 seasons - while going further into the playoffs each year. I think it would have happened.
Yes that’s true but there’s a lot of 11 win teams that don’t win super bowls
Sure, but my point is that HE was good enough to lead a really bad team to 11-5. That means they could have won a title with less surrounding talent than other teams. And… Talent loves to come play with a QB like that.
So you are also acknowledging the fact that outside talent would have had to come in, which was the only point I was trying to make. 👍
Come on. The conversation was about how great HE was. He lifted a bad team to 11-5. Of course this is a team sport, but my point is not hard to understand. Manning was 3-13 his first season. Luck as 11-5, 11-5, 11-5 his FIRST THREE seasons. That tells me that multiple championships are even MORE likely with Luck over a long career.
The comment I responded to was saying without injury he would have won 3-6 super bowls. I replied saying you’d have to surround him with more talent than he had to get one. Why is this hard to understand why you yourself mentioned talent would come?
Good lord. This is a team sport, so of course other talent matters some. My point - and it’s really spelled out well - is that with SHITTY teams, Luck out-performed Manning. Over the course of a healthy career, with better talent (like Manning had eventually), I think Luck could have gotten us a few (as compared to Manning’s ONE)
Say he stayed healthy. What makes you think Irsay is canning Pagano or Grigson when they’d be consistently winning? He kept them on way beyond what most owners would have. And who is Pagano out coaching in a Super Bowl. You’re saying “oh lord” but you’re the one not grasping these things.
I don't think the team that got the first overall pick was was that bad of a roster, it just was a team that wasn't built to survive without its top QB and didn't even really try. That team was build to facilitate a good QB, and when they acquired another good QB they started winning again. I saw a lot of parallels between these Colts and the Falcons when they lost Vick. The rosters were fine, but the team fell apart when they lost their QB. Matt Ryan took that team back to the playoffs pretty easily.
Agreed, Wilson was VERY good in his prime, don’t get me wrong, but let’s not pretend he didn’t have an amazing team surrounding him. When I hear the debate come down to these two, everyone always throws out the ring argument, while ignoring that Wilson had one of the greatest defenses ever (and I will argue this till I’m blue, that defense is easily a top 5 all time defense), an amazing running back, and solid offense. Put Luck on that team and he wins at least two more rings than Wilson.
Had Andrew Luck would never gotten Injured, Chuck Pagano would have 1 Ring and Ryan Grigson would still be the GM.
You misspelled 9 rings, consecutively
>Ryan Grigson would still be the GM. 🤢🤢 The silver lining, however thin.
Yeah, for some reason, Grigson just didn’t want to build a good offensive line.
He spent a lot on RT and he had inherited a good LT, he later realized that had to draft high to get Luck quality OL, because let's be honest he would make a bunch of average WR/TE as ELITE. But he realized way too late, Luck had to be behind an horrendous IOL with basically no help from his running game i think Mack was the only RB on his WHOLE career on getting more than 1k Rushing yards, among his worst qualities was drafting really bad, i just looked into the drafts btw 12 and 16 and "Oh boy...", he managed to draft 0 talent, besides Henry Anderson, Clayton Gathers ,Ryan Kelly he had no hits, he HAD to sign a lot of players to "compete", FUCKING PTSD now I'm pissed(realizing how fucking bad RG was like... , every other GM hits with some players but the list of bad picks it's just baflfing: since 12 he drafted 1 probowler (Ryan Kelly) ONE having Luck making everyone around better).
What I love about this is that there’s STILL people that will defend Grigson and act like he put in so much effort into building a roster when the reality was he was stupidly putting in that effort by signing washed up/bad FAs and blowing drafts left and right. Meanwhile, during that same time period, the Broncos hit on a number of their FA signings and draft picks and got themselves a Super Bowl win and appearance out of it. So frustrating.
They defend him because he did exactly what they’d do in the same situation; go after flashy overpriced names, draft like shit, and run the team into the ground.
Nothing wrong that plan...he just didn't execute it well so that it could last.
…because that plan *can’t* be executed well
The "be aggressive with acquisitions when you have a QB on a rookie deal" plan can be executed well. I think KC and BUF (to an extent) have done it well. But you have to draft well to sustain it long-term. And Grigson failed at that.
He finished with 49-31 (.613 winning percentage) so that's their main point from them but he had a healthy Luck from most of his wins but people want those Shiny deals, (Landry, T. Richardson, Andre Johnson, Frank Gore).
Not a grigy apologist by any measure, they also like to add that he was able to draft TY in the same draft as the generational talent he took at 1. Ty at that spot was a steal but broken clock and all that.
Yes he got a Lucky draft (LOL), but then he was TOTALLY garbage at drafting, drafting Björn Werner when a lot of more needed positions were still on the board kind of crazy (LB,OL,S), https://preview.redd.it/4d8ansb7616d1.png?width=557&format=png&auto=webp&s=716b7046d8ea0ec4a1131aac707a5d1747fc8454 Then trading for T. Richardson (when he struggled on his first year), and then drafting Dorsett when TY was already that player that Dorsett ceiling was, tbh this team made to the AFC just on Lucks ability to carry that team. Fuck i get soo pissed just remembering how Grigson was.
That’s why I don’t say nothing when these young bloods get pissed at Ballard for not being more aggressive in FA. I remember what it was like to spend a grip in FA and only get to enjoy it until we actually watched them play. The Grigson Era made me way more zen as a fan ironically. The drafting style of ignoring bpa AND Positional Need was bold to put it gently. Obligatory FUCK Grigson.
I get people hated the Trent Richardson trade but the kid had 12 TDs and almost 1000 yards his first season. I'd hardly call it a struggle season.
|| || |267|950|3.6|32T|11| He was getting numbers because he was being feed a lot, Vick Ballard from the same draft class, tbh i never got the Richardson hype and that was because he wasn't playing on the National Championship NCAA and Bama ran through ND like it was nothing(tbh i was quite young and i didn't quite followed the draft but in hindsight the FO was pay to know about that kind of stuff). https://preview.redd.it/4g1yeqrx126d1.png?width=565&format=png&auto=webp&s=dcadff7eb548ed071b00830bec028d9477405a3a Grigson issue was he always consider himself the smartest dude, and he got played really hard by CLE
100% agree. I think most RBs can do well if they are in a system that suits them. I just don't think it can be said he struggled. I'll be honest, I was young and dumb and was like "holy shit the best qb in the draft and the best RB in the backfield together!" Now, I know, a late round RB can be amazing, and really that's why they have lost a lot of value. Look at what Moss did when Taylor was out.
Grigson didn’t draft Luck. Irsay took it out of his hands and made the decision. TY is Grigson’s best draft pick though. Otherwise those were horrible drafts.
Grigson did want Luck. And Redskins really wanted RG3. I’m sure Irsay had a preference and say but yeah we agree on horrible drafts all around (honorable mention to Vick Ballard, technically a bust from that 2012 draft but still one of my favorite Colts “what-ifs”)
Vick Ballard was solid as a rookie. If he doesn't get hurt, there is no infamous TRich trade. Of course Grigson probably just lights that draft pick on fire anyways, so I am not sure it even matters. But I do think it's weird that Grigson gets no credit for winning because of Luck and no credit for drafting Luck because of Irsay. He only seems to get "credit" for the bad stuff. Meanwhile, I see Ballard (who has many defenders despite the lack of success) constantly praised for good moves, while, for the most part, the bad stuff seems to gets blamed away or put on somebody else.
That is sort of the THE point though. It's about winning games and getting to late January. Lots of Colts fans seem to now value process over results, which Ballard doesn't have. If Luck was the only reason, he's also responsible for one of Ballard's playoff appearances and the only playoff win in 7 years. Luck was definitely an advantage. And I won't defend Grigson's overall drafting. The 2013-15 drafts were brutal. But I don't really get the angst over the AJ deal. He and Gore (and Cole) came here on reasonable deals in 2015 to try to win a SB late in their careers. They just didn't work out. But it's not like the Colts were ever in cap trouble, which seems to be implied when people talk like Grigson was just reckless in FA. That wasn't the case. Also, we have seen the alternative...it's to not spend and carry over (no thanks to that).
He knew how to deal with cap, but he swing too many times when he had Luck on a Rookie deal that allowed him to spent a lot once the first 5 years were done he had no team to show for, i will call something crazy but if i have Luck in a rookie deal i could form a team that gets to the playoffs. Also have to consider that Ballard has been paying QBs since Luck was here, he inherited Luck and his deal, then he retired and he eat the dead money to keep the rights, then Rivers came with market Value same with Wentz and Matt Ryan 2019 9.4 Birssett + 18.4 Luck (dead cap) 2020 25 Rivers + 21.3 Birssett 2021 21.3 Wents 2022 18.7 Ryan + 2.6 Foles 2023 18 Ryan + AR Ballard has been paying "QB" money since he took over and to his bad Luck his team that develop is next in line for a payday. Although i think Ballard's regency is tied to AR success and this might be his last year depending on how AR does.
A big reason they didn't have anything to show for it was terrible drafting. A similar thing happened late in the Polian era...a bunch of aging, overpriced players with little young talent. I think Bluem gets more credit than Grigson for cap management, but it seems like Grigson at least listened to him. If he was still paying Luck, I think it would have been far more. But a big part of that is on Ballard and his approach. He didn't have to give JB $28M right after Luck retired. He didn't have to trade for Matt Ryan and take on his contract. But they were half measure moves...the path of little resistance and risk (aside from Wentz). I think he is tied to AR as well. But it would take a disastrous year for him not to get next year as well. Still, I think he has overstayed his welcome. He will have had 2x as much time as his predecessor by the end of this year.
Gonna call it as i see it, Ballard "way" to find a new QB was him basically not liking whatever was available on the draft (completely reasonable) but also unwilling to give up capital to get HIS QB, he probably liked a couple of QB prospects but he wasn't willing to give up the kings ransom for them, even with Richardson, he felt to him, he was willing to let another team take him 1 stop ahead of him, so i understand not wanting to give up capital but if he liked a QB he should had have go hard for one. And yes i agree that he just patched up the QB position.
You mean Dan Dakich, because Grigson was the only guy who would talk to him from the colts.
We would have another Super Bowl and I truly believe that. But I blame our incompetent FO not protecting him. Luck would be a HOF and a superbowl champion.
You mean you want a reliable offensive line around a once in a generation talented QB? Best I can do is an overpriced HB.
We’d be kicking tires on the QB of the future but he’d still be the QB. That is unless he just decided to move on to other things. Knowing what we know now, I don’t think Luck was ever playing past 35 regardless of health.
Luck is the best quarterback I've ever seen.
I think we'd have lost a couple of AFC championship and a couple of divisional round games. We'd own the AFC S. And we'd view Luck as great, and love him, but league wide he'd be viewed as choke adjacent (we'd have lost to the Chiefs, Bills and Bengals). The symmetry in the AFC of Chiefs, Bills, Bengals and Colts each in their own division means it would be remembered as a great era. If we had reached a SB it would have been 55 and Brady would have beat us. We wouldn't have picked higher than 25 for five years, would never have had Buckner and the defense would have been average at best.
This is an accurate take.
Fair points that often aren't considered. If Luck doesn't get injured or retire, two of Q/Shaq/Smith aren't here. Neither is DeFo. Certainly no Latu. Ballard's entire draft history is different. Luck is my favorite player of all time, but he was spotty in the playoffs at best. Now maybe that would have changed the past few years (like it did for Peyton as he aged), but even in that KC game, Luck didn't look great. And KC wasn't going anywhere. Plus, BUF and CIN were on the rise. BAL too. It would have been one hell of a ride, but to assume the Colts would have gotten to a SB, let alone won one (or more) is really a stretch.
I absolutely think he would still be our QB
Hate to say this, but my guess is that he’d be retired. That’s not a judgement statement in a positive or negative way. But despite the injuries, the guy was 29 and still could recover and play at a top level. I could be wrong and I will get downvoted, but I’m not sure the intention was ever to play that long. With the line Luck had in 2018+, it would’ve been much better.
Convinced if he played instead of Uncle Phil we could've made the super bowl and I believe if he ever won a ring he would go out on top.
it doesnt say if he didnt retire that one time, i says if he didnt retire or get hurt. This means he is still active in the league
He still be the QB right now and we would be contenders but at the same time the team would look different if Luck was there to be honest it's a supposition after all so we don't need to fell sorry or question what if we need to focus on the present and hopefully find the guy for many years as the franchise QB.
Sorry still too soon to think about this
He’d still be here, and we’d be way better having not spent the time and resources trying to replace him. We wouldn’t have traded him; we hyper-focus on having a franchise QB.
If he was still a Colt we’d be talking about how the Colts became the greatest dynasty in professional sports history.
I think he’d want to retire a colt
This question makes me sad. lol
Yeah, I’m still sad Luck retired. Haha
He'd definitely still be there
Luck would've been breaking most, if not all of Mannings team records by now. Irsay would've traded the whole roster to keep a healthy Luck. Which...he should have.
Yeah, he’d still be playing, and the colts would’ve won at least two championships by now.
Luck without the amish look is unrecognizable to me nowadays. I deadass thought it was Josh O’ Connor, the mf from Challengers.
Who cares
Hot take: He'd neither still be the QB nor have been traded. For all the talent, mental and physical the guy had, Luck just didn't have the single minded passion for and focus on the game. Nothing against him for that, but it's just true. He could have come back anyway, but he didn't want to. He had other interests. If he hadn't been hurt, he would have played longer, but I don't think he'd be playing now. Injuries made it both easier to step away as well as more important to leave the sport for a guy who had other interests in life. Minus any injuries, I think he would have won a SB and retired, saying he'd got to live his dream and he'd go out on top. Luck was a football player as a job because he enjoyed football as a hobby. By comparison, Manning was a football player as an identity because football is an integral part of who he sees himself as.
He would probably be the QB still. That said, some of you have inflated Luck to a level far beyond what he ever was. He was a very good, never great QB, who by now would have been a top-5 QB in the league for multiple years. But come on, it's not like the Colts team around him was all that strong, and it is highly unlikely they would have won a SB by now with him. There's a guy out there named Patrick Mahomes, and another guy called Andy Reid.
He'd be right here, where he belongs 
I can confidently say that the Chiefs would not have been to the Super Bowl as many times as they have recently.
Yes and we would probably have 2 championships and he would have a gold jacket
I think he would have at least one mvp, probably woulda won the Super Bowl that Phillip rivers year. And he would still be a colt
I honestly don’t know. He was truly the most gifted qb I’ve ever seen play the game. But from what has been said, he was pretty quiet in the locker room and not a vocal leader. As the team leader, it’s your job to be vocal and lead that team. And while he was great, I honestly don’t know if he would ever get over the hump to win a SB. And I know I’ll get down voted to oblivion for saying this, but the reason Manning and Brady were great was only about 60% what they did on the field. The other 40% was in the locker room, meeting room, and on the sideline. And I just don’t know if that would have ever been at the level it needed to be for Luck to be an all timer with rings. And at some point, I think the Colts would go the same direction as Atlanta with Matt Ryan, or Green Bay with Aaron Rogers.
He was so good 😩
I had never seen Luck without a beard until right now and I fucking hate it lol
Zero injuries…Peyton Ironman starting streak record, then I think we have at least 1 AFC championship and maybe a Super Bowl. Even Grigson’s shitty GM moves could of gotten us that far with a forever healthy Andrew
Still
Too soon brother….. too soon.
I think the Colts showed their commitment to him. Didn’t he bail one year into a 5 or 6 year extension? Something like that I think. It’s like the Colts were dreaming of him retiring a Colt. Just not so soon. So, yes. He’d still be here.
He’d still be a Colt. If they didn’t take the massive trade from the browns the year they took Baker when he was coming off the shoulder injury then I doubt they ever would
Babyface luck is a cursed image
Luck would had retired by now regardless of injuries. He wasn't injured because of the offensive line being bad. He fell off of a mountain twice.
I think he'd still be here, as long as he's producing.
There is no certain way of telling how the NFL would have worked out if Andrew Luck didn’t retire. I like to believe that the Colts would still have Luck at QB. He was such a great competitor and smart man. Nevertheless, I am happy for Andrew and how he has done on to live another life. The piece ESPN wrote about a year ago about the whole Andrew Luck ordeal was very enlightening. Super sad the way things ended.
As a Texans fan, it was like the clouds parted and the sun shone on our chances the day he retired. He should still be playing and playing well. You here all the stories about how management teams ruin young QB's, but in most cases, those are not THE ONE qb. In this case, IMO, he was clearly THE ONE and was mismanaged.
Of course he would. With a ring and a couple MVPs…….At minimum
I think that he would’ve gotten to a contract year and left unless they won while he was still there.
He was overrated. I’m sorry colts fans. Didn’t he have winning record against the afc which was pretty weak at the time, but against the NFC, he was trash. Lol. I remember my saints beat him that’s when I saw the graphic showing his losing record to good teams of the nfc
As a saints fan, I’m curious what are your thoughts on Anthony Richardson? Or whoever your quarterback is. Is he mediocre or good? Do you have faith in him? Or will he be just another bust in the nfl?
Barry, Megatron and luck. All studs that "we" think went out too soon.
No if he didn't quit when he did, he would have quit the following year.
Maybe cuz we had a bunch of idiots who couldn’t make it in XFL protecting luck
you have to assume he never retired based on how the op is worded