Should Colts fans panic over Andrew Luck’s lower leg injury?

Indianapolis Colts quarterback Andrew Luck has spent much of this off-season rehabilitating a nagging calf strain. Luck cites that the injury happened when he was training. This is (obviously) unfortunate news, seeing how he was looking forward to having a “normal offseason” with no injuries to take care of.

Since Luck’s participation was scarce in OTA’s, it’s safe to assume that the injury occurred in April/May. The team however, has not been clear on a specific date.

Head coach Frank Reich did say if the Colts were heading into a big game, he thinks the quarterback would play. “Do I think he’d play? Yeah... But again, only he can answer that. You have to trust the players and that’s what we’re doing in this case.”

It sounds like they are just being cautious, and there is nothing to worry about... Right?

The short answer, and most likely answer is yes - there is nothing to worry about. Training camp is important for any player, and missing reps is crucial. That being said, Luck is a seasoned veteran, who now understands how Frank Reich and the coaching staff like to operate.

In order to meet or even exceed high expectations this season, Luck will need his body to last more than 16 regular season games. Missing off-season work may not be ideal, but necessary for him to achieve that goal.

Taking that into consideration, you cannot blame the team for being conservative when handling their franchise quarterback’s health. Common sense says that: If resting him throughout the preseason could likely prevent re-aggravation of an injury during the season - you sit the player.

So what’s the reason for panic?

Some people feel that the organization lied when they were handling Luck’s shoulder injury. It seemed to be a never ending roller coaster ride that took stops everywhere, including the Netherlands. Ultimately that ride did end with a comeback player of the year award.

Throughout this process trust was lost, and beyond that - the soon to be 30 year-old quarterback is now carrying emotional baggage.

“I still have some emotional scars from that and that lives with me still,’’ Luck said of his shoulder injury. “But I’m trying to use it in a positive way.’’

“We are all working on resolving this so it’s not a lingering issue,’’ he said. “I could not live myself if we got to the season or a point in the season where I said, ‘Hey, I could have done this to take care of this issue but I didn’t because of X, Y or Z.’ I’m not going to allow that to happen.’’

At the end of the day, only the Colts organization truly knows the status of Luck’s health. Fans and pundits who believe there that there is a bigger conspiracy need to understand that every detail of his medical record won’t be released. This is common practice around the NFL, teams do not release more information on injuries then needed.

I’m not totally ruling out the possibility that he is more injured than what the team leads on. But as of now, all signs are pointing towards Luck suiting up Week 1. Until reports or news comes out refuting what the Colts & Luck are saying, it’s safe to take your hand off the panic button and R-E-L-A-X.