Skip to content

Grigson, Pagano continue throwing Luck under the bus

Isaiah J. Downing / USA TODAY Sports/Reuters

Indianapolis Colts head coach Chuck Pagano and general manager Ryan Grigson have something many NFL teams would kill for: a bona fide star at the quarterback position.

But instead of thanking their lucky stars, Pagano and Grigson have often thrown Andrew Luck to the wolves to save their own skin.

One recent example was the constant talk of Luck needing to protect himself, despite the Colts doing next to nothing to keep their most valuable asset healthy.

With Luck on pace to take a historic 60 sacks this season, Grigson piled on with another hit Friday.

"When you pay Andrew (Luck) what we did, it’s going to take some time to build on the other side of the ball," Grigson said.

It's a fair argument, right? Grigson inherited a mess of a roster this past offseason when owner Jim Irsay decided it was time for a fresh start, and is tasked with undoing four years of poor decisions.

Oh wait, it was Grigson who made those decisions!

The point would be valid if Grigson was a first-year general manager, but he's been in charge of the Colts' roster since 2012. He's also the man who gave Luck the biggest contract in NFL history.

Before that, Grigson was handed a golden ticket in Luck, and his rookie contract. The Colts had a franchise quarterback on a relatively small deal, were flush with cap space, and were still unable to build a defense capable of holding up.

Grigson drove the roster into the ground with putrid free-agent additions, the trade for Trent Richardson, and wasted first-day draft picks. But he now appears to be warping history - or completely ignoring it - by shifting blame onto Luck's massive contract.

Grigson's comments raise the same question that was asked by many when the Colts extended him and Pagano, instead of firing them in the offseason: If you couldn't build a roster when Luck earned $5.5 million, how will you now that he's commanding nearly $20 million more?

Luck - outside of his injury-plagued 2015 season - more than earned that contract. He excelled despite the Colts not producing a 100-yard rusher in a game since 2012, having a head coach who does stuff like this, and playing with a defense that's allowed 34.5 points per game in his 26 career losses, according to Scott Kacsmar of Football Outsiders.

The 2012 No. 1 overall pick should not escape without blame - his inaccuracy and bone-headed interceptions have hurt the Colts. But he's also the main reason Grigson and Pagano are still employed.

Sitting at 1-3, and with their jobs once again in potential jeopardy, it appears Grigson and Pagano are looking for any scapegoat they can find. Apparently not even Luck is untouchable.

Daily Newsletter

Get the latest trending sports news daily in your inbox