Andrew Luck Feels ‘Deflated’

Indianapolis Colts quarterback Andrew Luck put his quick-witted Stanford education to use today, when answering reporters’ questions after the announcement that he had been drafted first in this year’s Pro Bowl.

In response to questions regarding last week’s AFC Championship loss to the Patriots, Luck stated, “It’s sort of, the energy is sort of sucked out of you. You do feel deflated.”

It was a humorous and interesting choice of verbiage for Luck, considering the controversy surrounding cheating allegations that began to arise earlier in the week against New England.

The Patriots have been accused of providing deflated footballs from their sidelines in last Sunday’s game, a scandal that has come to be known as “Deflategate.”

Luck received the consolation prize of being the first quarterback drafted for this year’s Pro Bowl game to be played in Glendale, Arizona this Sunday, January 25. He is in good company with Houston defensive end J.J. Watt and Steelers receiver Antonio Brown, among others.

The Pro Bowl, originating in 1939, serves to provide a platform of recognition to the all stars of the sport. Like many awards, while it’s an honor to be nominated, it certainly doesn’t take away the sting of not playing in the biggest game of the year — the Super Bowl.

Despite the honor of being nominated for his third straight Pro Bowl appearance and chosen as the first quarterback for the second year in a row, Andrew Luck may be feeling a bit more like he’s always the bridesmaid and never the bride as his Super Bowl dreams remain elusive.

Andrew Luck was drafted to the NFL in the first round by the Indianapolis Colts in 2012 after an illustrious career at Stanford that garnered him two Heisman Trophy runner ups in 2010 and 2011, and the Pac 12 Offensive Player of the Year recognition also in 2011.

In his three NFL seasons combined, Luck has passed for nearly 13,000 yards and 86 touchdowns of regular season play. His versatility in being able to scramble out of the pocket as well as throw deep has helped him lead the Colts to the playoffs all three years.

Adam Schefter of ESPN tweeted earlier this week that the Colts are currently working on a lucrative contract negotiation with Andrew’s management that “could be the richest deal in NFL.”

For now, it appears that Mr. Luck (despite his “deflated” comment that in actuality due to his sheepish reaction after uttering the word may have been a slip of the tongue rather than a calculated response) is embracing his success and accomplishments, rather than dwelling on his most recent loss.

In an exhibition of class, Luck took a moment to give kudos to the Patriots for last week’s victory despite the #Deflategate hype.

“It’s the nature in where we are today in society. You can’t take anything away from them being a heck of a team and they are a good football team.”

Stay classy Andrew Luck. Stay classy.

[Image courtesy of fansided.com]