The Indianapolis Colts are doing everything they can to pinpoint what exactly is keeping quarterback Andrew Luck off the field, and it’s crushing his fantasy football stock.
As the Colts continue to hold Luck out of practice and the preseason, it was revealed that his calf injury has turned into an ankle injury. General manager Chris Ballard was non-committal on Luck’s chances to play Week 1 against the Los Angeles Chargers.
Now, with just weeks before the regular season, fantasy football managers will be pressed with an extremely difficult decision: Should they draft Luck?
Luck’s stock has plummeted over the last week. Since Aug. 3 when his average draft position was 5.02 (QB2), Luck is now being drafted at 6.08 (QB4) as of Wednesday. That trend will continue and likely take an even sharper turn with the revelation that Luck is believed to be dealing with more of an ankle issue.
Even if the 29-year-old returns to the field at some point early in the season, there is a chance he isn’t playing at 100%, especially since Ballard said they aren’t against him playing at a level less than that.
“If he can function, yes. If he can function, yes. And his pain is under control, and he can protect himself and play good, yes,” Ballard said when asked if Luck would play at 85–90%.
Obviously, taking Luck at his current ADP would be a massive risk. Because we have no timetable for return or any information as to how he will feel even when he does return, it is best to wait on drafting Luck until the double-digit rounds at the earliest.
Luck himself has said that while he can play through this type of pain, it makes him feel he would produce as an average quarterback. That’s not a fantasy asset you want before the double-digit rounds in a draft.
“And if I’m going out here in pain, I’ll be average. I will feel like an average quarterback and I’ll be an average quarterback,” Luck told reporters on July 30. “That’s not good enough for me. That’s not good enough for this club.”
Some are likely to take Luck off of their draft board entirely to mitigate risk at the position, which is fine. But if Luck is the quarterback you want leading your fantasy team, taking him anywhere before the 10th round is a huge risk.
This could change if Luck winds up going through the new rehab program and comes out without any pain, but it isn’t clear if that’s even a possibility.
The reigning Comeback Player of the Year will have another test of adversity to go through in 2019, and it comes at the worst time for fantasy football managers.
With three weeks to go until the regular season, understand there will be a massive risk in drafting Luck anywhere before the double-digit rounds.
