Andrew Luck will not play this Sunday against the Dolphins

So much for a week of speculation: Colts head coach Chuck Pagano announced at his press conference on Monday that quarterback Andrew Luck will not play on Sunday against the Miami Dolphins.

Pagano said that the Colts will play Luck this season if the doctors clear him and say that he is fully healthy, but since he won't be playing this Sunday that leaves just one remaining week to return to the field, in week 17 at home against the Tennessee Titans.  It sounds like the Colts aren't ready to rule him out for the season, as they will play him if he is indeed fully healthy, but it remains to be seen whether Luck will return from his lacerated kidney and torn abdominal muscle this year.

Week 16 had long been regarded as a possible return date for Luck ever since his injury, but he will instead miss his sixth straight game and eighth game of the season.  The interesting question now becomes who will start in his place, as Matt Hasselbeck is very beat up.  Pagano described him today as "beat up from the feet up," and it's clear that he's hurting.  So it could very well be Charlie Whitehurst starting on Sunday for Indianapolis, and either way I'd expect the team to add another quarterback - either to the active roster or to the practice squad - since Alex Tanney was signed off of the team's practice squad today by the Titans.

Luck has played in seven games this year and has completed 162 of 293 passes (55.3%) for 1,881 yards (6.42 yards per attempt) and 15 touchdowns against 12 interceptions for a passer rating of 74.9, also adding 196 yards rushing while averaging 5.9 yards per carry.  It has been a very rough season for Luck, as he has struggled on the field and has dealt with multiple injuries - a shoulder injury caused him to miss two games earlier this year, he was rumored to be playing through a rib injury, and now a lacerated kidney and torn abdominal muscle will cause him to miss his sixth straight game.