Record $139.1M Luck deal

Even after the most trying season of Andrew Luck’s NFL career, the Colts weren’t going to let their franchise quarterback get away.

Indianapolis wrapped up Luck through the 2021 season on Wednesday with a six-year contract extension worth $139.1 million, including $44 million fully guaranteed over the next two seasons.

Though the overall worth of the deal makes Luck the NFL’s highest-paid player by far (Jay Cutler is second with the seven-year, $126 million deal he signed in 2014), the contract is actually a relative bargain for the Colts.

Luck’s new deal works out to $23.2 million per year, which isn’t much more than the going rate for a franchise quarterback before the huge annual increases in the NFL salary cap started to kick in last season.

Assuming Luck rebounds from a poor 2015 season and plays like the worthy No. 1 overall pick he was the previous three seasons, this deal will look like a bargain compared to the rest of the league by the third or fourth year.

“I am thrilled and excited to continue with this great organization,” Luck said in a statement released by the team. “I can’t wait for this season to start.”

Though Luck gave the Colts and owner Jim Irsay a relative discount, it’s not as if he signed the rest of his career away. Luck is just 26 and will be 32 when the contract runs out, leaving him another chance for a huge payday in free agency or by resigning with Indianapolis.

On the other hand, the Colts need Luck to bounce back from a woeful, injury-f illed 2015 season in which he threw almost as many interceptions (12) as touchdowns (15) and went 2-5 in his seven starts as Indy missed the playoffs for the first time in his career.

Luck, who threw an NFL-best 40 TDs in 2014, could not overcome a lacerated kidney and a shoulder injury last year, cutting short his season.

Though some doubts persist about the health of Luck’s shoulder, he took part in the Colts’ offseason workouts and appeared to hold up well.

“This is an exciting day for the organization and Colts fans around the globe,” Irsay said in a statement. “When you consider what this team has accomplished in four seasons with Andrew under center, you cannot help but be thrilled about the future.”