It’s the lacerated kidney that will cost Colts quarterback Andrew Luck the last nine games of the season.
But apparently his early season injuries were worse than reported at the time, and clearly affected him throughout the year.
According to Stephen Holder of the Indianapolis Star, Luck sustained torn cartilage on two of his ribs, which had him dealing with significant pain when he did come back and play four games in October. He reportedly took pain-killing injections so he could continue to play, and was limited by the injury, which affected his ability to throw normally and thus, his accuracy.
Luck declined comment when asked about the old injury.
Of course, he’d have already been shut down for the season if the Colts didn’t have a slim chance at the playoffs, but he admitted this year has been difficult for him.
“Football players want to play football,” he said. “You want to be out there playing. You feel like you’re letting teammates down. You feel like you’re letting people down. You watch [Matt Hasselbeck] and Charlie [Whitehurst] battle and fight and be warriors. I watch Frank Gore playing his butt off week in and week out [and] you want to be out there with those guys. When you can’t, it stinks.”
The other thing that stinks is Luck’s offensive line, which put him in those positions, and contributed to the abuse he has taken.