No Andrew Luck Against the Jaguars; Injury Forces First Missed Start Ever

October 4, 2015
|In Fantasy Sports, NFL
|By Paul Marin
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For the first time in his more than three years, Indianapolis Colts‘ quarterback Andrew Luck will miss an NFL start due to injury. Both ESPN and Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network are reporting that the former Stanford Cardinal will not play against the Jacksonville Jaguars this week. Luck injured his right throwing shoulder near the end of last Sunday’s Colts victory against the Tennessee Titans. As of our deadline, no timetable has been given Luck’s absence from the field. For the Colts upcoming game against the Jaguars, veteran NFL quarterback Matt Hasselbeck would start in place of the injured Luck. Fantasy Football general managers, adjust your rosters accordingly.

The Rap Sheet reported:

“There is no structural damage in Luck’s shoulder. But it was deemed the pain was too much for the quarterback to play through. Luck was considered limited in practice all week after suffering the shoulder injury in Week 3. He did not throw this week until Saturday’s session,” per Rapoport.

Life Without Luck

Pagano and Luck | Mandatory Credit: Kevin Hoffman-USA TODAY Sports

Colts’ Head Coach Chuck Pagano said he had “supreme confidence” Luck would not miss time. Hasselbeck has experience running the Pagano offense. The 40-year-old backup threw 44 passes last season in relief of Andrew Luck. Sunday will be Hasselbeck’s first start in an Indianapolis Colts uniform and his first start since 2012 with the Tennessee Titans. Out of extreme caution, the Colts also signed backup Josh Johnson as insurance. Indy also has Alex Tanney on their roster. The Colts offense will have to rely heavily on Frank Gore and their defense against the Jacksonville Jaguars.

Upon the news that Luck would not start, the betting line plummeted across Las Vegas. The Colts were originally posted as 9.5-point favorites at most sportsbooks. While the spread went as low as -8 during the week, it was reposted between -3.5 and -4 on Sunday morning. The over/under number was adjusted from 47 to 44.5.

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