What Can We Learn from Andrew Luck’s Retirement?

Lesson for Managers/Owners: The Blind Side

Perhaps Sandra Bullock explained it best comprising her role as Leigh Anne Tuohy in the hit movie The Blind Side. In the opening monologue she describes the importance of protecting the quarterback’s blind side, the role of the left tackle:

“Now, y’all would guess that more often than not, the highest paid player on an NFL team is the quarterback. And you’d be right. But what you probably don’t know is that more often than not, the second highest paid player is, thanks to Lawrence Taylor, a left tackle. Because, as every housewife knows, the first check you write is for the mortgage, but the second is for the insurance. The left tackle’s job is to protect the quarterback from what he can’t see coming. To protect his blind side.”

The Blind Side

The Colts organization was notoriously under fire for failing to protect Andrew Luck, especially early in his career. This would eventually lead to injuries. Injuries led to rehab. Luck grew tired of being stuck in the endless cycle of injury, pain, rehab, repeat. Has Jim Irsay never seen The Blind Side?

The Colts were not the first time to negligently disregard the safety of their quarterback, nor will they be the last. Andrew Luck’s retirement should sent a message to every GM in the NFL; if you want to keep your franchise quarterback, you better protect your franchise quarterback.

Lesson for the Coaches: Times Are Changing

Tom Brady is widely regarded as the GOAT (Greatest Of All-Time) quarterback in the NFL. The one man big enough to be his rival during the era was Peyton Manning. Both Tom Brady and Peyton Manning seem to have a love for the game of football that many of us will never understand. Injuries ended Manning’s career earlier than he wanted. Brady is still going strong, winning Super Bowls with his time-defying vegan-charged body of indestructibility. The most impressive thing about these two men was the passion for the game of football. Reports are that both of these men were always the first ones in the building and the last ones to leave. It’s almost as if they loved the study and preparation for the game of football more than the game itself.

Times are changing. The NFL is different. Fans are different. Millennials are different. Andrew Luck is different. NFL players have always made a lot of money in the modern era. The amount of money continues to climb to astronomical levels, especially for quarterbacks. High draft picks in the NFL draft are set for generations to come after just a few short years. Luck didn’t need the money. He is a natural student. Not many NFL quarterbacks graduate from Stanford with an engineering degree or host a book club podcast in between football games. Luck is a unique character. He has a desire to learn and grow mentally more than most, but that love is not rooted in football. Tom Brady is in his 40’s and still loves the game of football. Luck hasn’t even turned 30 yet and has become disinterested. Times are different. People are different. Andrew Luck is different.

Lesson for the Fans: Choosing Yourself

Though not as famous, the curious case of Andrew Luck is ironically similar to another young NFL quarterback. The rival Tennessee Titans drafted Jake Locker in 2011, a year before the Colts drafted Andrew Luck. After four seasons with the struggling Titans, Jake Locker retired from the NFL following the 2014 season.

Like Luck, Locker battled injuries caused by a team neglecting to protect the centerpiece of the offense. To the Titans credit, they at least tried to protect their quarterback by bringing in free agent offensive linemen and drafting players like Chance Warmack. Bad scouting and poor development negated everything the organization tried to accomplish. Jake Locker retired because he lost the passion for the game of football. The passion for football was beaten out of him by the numerous injuries and rehabs he endured. Locker moved back home to Washington and has yet to resurface on a national relevance. He’s enjoying his life with his family on his ranch out in the middle of nowhere. Locker chose to live the life he wanted over the fame, fortune, and funds the NFL provides.

Fans often forget that the NFL is a business. Playing quarterback for the Colts was a job. If your job required you to constantly go through injury, pain, and rehab, would you stick around with $100 million in the bank? Some NFL players are divas. Andrew Luck is not one of those players. Before you go on booing your players for making a mistake on the field, you better make sure you can handle it if they decide to quit or leave.

Best of Luck, Andrew

Luck may not be quite the hermit and simpleton that is Jake Locker, but he is choosing to live his life on his terms. Luck has $100 million dollars, a degree from Stanford, and he’s smarter than 99.9% of us (and more polite as well). Why continue to take the hits of the NFL? He wants to travel the world and focus on his family. So many people dream of being a quarterback in the NFL and achieve their dreams. Luck is one of the few who has tried it and decided a normal life is better. The grass isn’t always greener. Many Colts fans are angry with Luck for leaving them during the start of his “prime” years as a quarterback. Andrew Luck deserves respect. He played the game the right way. He was a winner on and off the field. Some things in life are more important than football, your health, your family, and your time are all one of those things. You only get one life, and he is choosing to spend it the way he wants. In the end, Andrew Luck, like Jake Locker before him, chooses himself and his health over the dream job.

For more awesome football discussion join us on our sports forums. Follow me on twitter @TNBassMan10