Ever since former quarterback Andrew Luck retired at 29, the Indianapolis Colts have struggled to find a better signal-caller. His decision shocked the league at that time, but it is once again in the limelight thanks to a former teammate's claims. Luck reached out to the media to refute it.

In an email to Fox 59's Mike Chappell, Luck wrote that "any notion of internal pressures that influenced my decision are without merit," clearing general manager Chris Ballard of any wrongdoing. He also shared that the two are still close, and they had a "wonderful partnership," especially when Luck made his decision

Luck had to personally step into this situation after Ballard was painted as the villain by former Colts tight end Eric Ebron. Appearing on the On My Soul podcast, he claimed Ballard presented Luck with an ultimatum when he was navigating painful injuries.

“Andrew then decides that he’s so tired of injury and he doesn’t want to do the surgery,” Ebron said. “And you know the man around there that gets on everybody’s nerves, ‘Big Drawers’ [Ballard] over there behind that desk, he tells Andrew, ‘You’re either playing this year, or we’re moving on.’”

Luck always maintained that he quit the NFL because of the series of injuries he sustained in such a short time. He suffered a torn labrum, a lacerated kidney, and an abdominal wall tear by the time he was 29. It had simply become too much for the QB.

"I'm in pain. I'm still in pain," Luck said in 2019, when he announced his retirement. He stated that he wanted to have “the ability to live the life [he wanted] to live.” Luck is now the general manager of Stanford football, bringing some much-needed attention to a struggling team.

It was natural to suspect bad blood between the Colts GM and the QB, because he retired without having spent even a decade in the league. But based on Ballard's conduct when Luck made his decision, it doesn't seem like things took a turn for the worse between the two.

Chris Ballard never had any ill will for Andrew Luck

Then-head coach Frank Reich, team owner Jim Irsay, and Ballard were gathered in a meeting with Luck in August 2019. That was when he broke the news to them for the first time. All three, according to his interview with The Athletic, said, "You're what?"

According to ESPN, the Colts GM had tried to reason with Luck, pointing out his "competitive fire." But nothing could shake the QB's resolute mind. The story also mentions that Chris Ballard and Luck's agent, Will Wilson, cried when the paperwork was signed.

"We're going to understand how the rest of the league lives," the GM told the locker room after this massive moment, since Andrew Luck and Peyton Manning were highlights in the NFL during their times. The Colts definitely are feeling that statement, seven years after Luck stepped away.

Andrew Luck does have a cordial relationship with Chris Ballard, and even mentored the latter's son whenever he dropped by the facility. The QB will always be welcomed by the franchise.

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Written by

Akanksha Biradar

Edited by

Afreen Kabir