Colts’ Luck to open camp on PUP list
Andrew Luck’s surgically repaired right shoulder will keep him out for the start of training camp.
How much more time he’ll miss is still unclear.
Indianapolis Colts general manager Chris Ballard told reporters Monday that the team’s franchise quarterback would go on the physically unable to perform list when players report to camp Saturday.
“I want to make this very clear: Andrew has not had a setback. This is all part of the process,” Ballard said. “The long-term prognosis is very good and that is very positive. We are going to follow the doctors’ orders and the process.”
Luck, the No. 1 overall pick in the 2012 draft and the face of the franchise, had surgery in January to repair a partially torn labrum. He did not participate in any of offseason workouts and the Colts knew all along there was a good chance he would still be recovering during camp.
Ballard said Luck did not start throwing until last week.
The next step, Ballard said, is working on his throwing motion and regaining strength in his right arm.
Still, the Colts have avoided establishing a timeline for when Luck will start taking snaps or whether he would be ready for the Sept. 10 season opener against the Los Angeles Rams.
The reason: Ballard doesn’t want to rush his best young player back.
“I don’t worry about when he plays or where he plays,” Ballard said when asked if Luck needs some preseason action. “Mr. (Jim) Irsay and I have had some long conversations about the next step, and the next step is practice. Right now, he’s still finishing up rehab.”
Luck was not available Monday because veterans aren’t required to be at the team complex until Saturday.
He has said the injury occurred initially on Sept. 27, 2015 at Tennessee. After the injury, Luck struggled — throwing 15 TD passes, 12 interceptions and going 2-5 and was sidelined for the first time in his pro career, missing nine games.
Luck opted against surgery following that season and responded with the best statistical year of his career despite playing through soreness.
Coach Chuck Pagano did make one adjustment — giving Luck an extra day off each week in an effort to keep him healthy. But after enduring a second season of shoulder pain, Luck opted for surgery.
■ John Elway agreed to a new five-year contract with Denver.
The deal ends a long-running saga that had fans wondering if their Hall of Fame quarterback-turned-front office executive would leave the franchise he’s led to three Super Bowl titles.
Elway was set to enter the final year of his contract as general manager and executive vice president of football operations before agreeing Monday to the extension through 2021.
The Broncos are 77-33 with five playoff appearances in six seasons under Elway’s leadership. Only New England (86-26) is better over that span.
■ Dallas released receiver and kick returner Lucky Whitehead after the third-year player was linked to a shoplifting arrest in his home state of Virginia, with his agent saying he believes it was a case of mistaken identity.
Whitehead said he “didn’t know about that” as he was escorted off the field by a member of the Cowboys’ public relations staff after the first morning walkthrough practice of training camp Monday in Oxnard, California.
■ Quarterback Robert Griffin II is scheduled to work out for Los Angeles on Tuesday.
The former Heisman Trophy winner and 2012 Offensive Rookie of the Year completed 59.2 percent of his passes with two touchdowns and three interceptions in five games last season for the Browns. Griffin led the club to its only win — over the Chargers on Christmas Eve — but was released March 10 after Cleveland acquired quarterback Brock Osweiler in a trade with the Houston Texans.
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