The Indianapolis Colts are entitled to a significant amount of money back from Andrew Luck now that he has decided to retire, but they are not going to create a situation where there could be tension between the former No. 1 overall pick and the franchise.
The Colts have reached a financial settlement with Luck and will not seek to recoup any of the money he could have potentially owed them, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter. Luck would have been contractually obligated to pay back a total of $24.8 million stemming from a pro-rated amount of his $32 million signing bonus from 2016 and $12 million in roster bonuses he was paid when the new league year began in March, but the Colts are letting him keep it all.
Luck dealt with numerous significant injuries throughout his NFL career, and the Colts clearly want to show that they appreciate all he went through. Irsay applauded Luck for leaving what he estimated to be close to $450 million on the table by walking away from football, so the owner is letting him keep the $24.8 million as what Schefter describes as a “parting gift.”
We know Colts fans didn’t treat Luck all that well with their reaction to his shocking retirement decision, but the team deserves credit for showing him a great deal of respect.
