Andrew Luck calls a play we all should give some thought to
By Froma Harrop
Syndicated columnist
Andrew Luck, the superstar quarterback who just quit professional football at the tender age of 29, has received mixed reviews from the sports world. Colts fans booed him. And any number of sports writers see his decision to get out of football to avoid more injuries as tragedy combined with weakness. One called it unthinkable.
This is not the beginning of the end for football. That beginning began when kids started showing up in smaller numbers for high school football, no doubt spurred by their parents. It continued in 2017 when sportscaster Ed Cunningham of ESPN decided to stop calling college games because of his growing discomfort with younger players brain trauma.
Luck has suffered a lacerated kidney, ripped labrum, fractured ribs and torn abdomen, not to mention at least one concussion. That would seem enough punishment for one career.
But many sport journalists dont seem to understand. Nor do they comprehend the lasting negative impact Luck will have on their beloved game.
His career will be remembered for his lengthy list of injuries and for what wasnt accomplished as much as for what was, one sports writer declared. Translation: The sport will do just fine without him.
And those who idolize athletes who play through the pain dont understand the decision of this thinking man. It doesnt quite register that the cycle of hurt and rehabilitation might justify passing by perhaps hundreds of millions and eternal fame as a football great.
At times, Luck couldnt open a door because of the pain. Rehab can be slow, and hes experienced great frustration in having the hurt return. And then there was the prospect of early cognitive decline.
Anyone whos suffered serious chronic pain knows that some things are worse than being poor. And Luck will not be poor by any sane standard. Hes already pocketed about $97 million.
https://www.heraldnet.com/opinion/harrop-luck-calls-a-play-we-all-should-give-some-thought-to/