Colts: Andrew Luck Ruled Out for Thanksgiving

Indianapolis Colts quarterback Matt Hasselbeck (8) passes under pressure by Pittsburgh Steelers outside linebacker Jarvis Jones (95) during the first half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Dec. 6, 2015, in Pittsburgh. “Both guys went in the training room and saw our docs and both were evaluated for concussions”. Pagano has not said who will replace Luck, though it is likely to be Tolzien.

Somehow, Indianapolis is going to have to find a way to score points with Scott Tolzien at quarterback, a guy who’s only thrown one National Football League pass since 2013. Too bad the No. 1 overall draft pick in 2012 will be watching this game from the sidelines because of a concussion he suffered in last week’s game against the Tennessee Titans. He was signed off the practice squad this past Saturday but failed to see the field Sunday on special teams.

While STEELERS WR Antonio Brown (8-76 receiving in Week 11 win) had 8-118-2 receiving on 11 targets in Week 13 rout of Colts last season.

Luck’s situation has dominated the news, but let’s not ignore a couple of defensive players.

But Pagano didn’t drop any hints Tuesday about the Colts’ plans or even whether Luck had been ruled out.

The Colts (5-5) have had two players – cornerback Patrick Robinson and offensive lineman Joe Reitz – miss games with concussions this season.

“You have to feel better, you have to take an impact test and pass an impact test, then practice non-contact, then have another day and then take another impact test and be cleared by an independent”, he said. His 35 sacks this season rank second in the league, and his 77 hits rank third. “This team’s taken us to the woodshed when we’ve played them the last two times”.

The Colts have historically played very well on Thanksgiving and on Thursdays, as they’ve won their last eleven games on Thursdays and are 2-0 all-time on Thanksgiving Day (with both wins coming during that eleven game win streak and coming in the Peyton Manning era).

This is the first time the Colts have ever played at home on Thanksgiving. The sixth came courtesy of Josh Freeman and Ryan Lindley pairing up in the season finale, less than a week after joining the team.

In all likelihood Scott Tolzien will get the start for the Colts. Their last two contests saw Roethlisberger complete 64 of his 88 pass attempts, for 886 yards, 10 touchdowns and zero interceptions. How much does Bell’s use against Cleveland a handful of days ago limit him on such short rest?

“He has a limited amount of exposure, but he is a pro”.

When they got to the postseason, they played McCarron again and beat the Bengals, 18-16, in a wild-card playoff game.