Andrew Luck's Contract Option Picked Up by Colts: Latest Details and Reaction

The Indianapolis Colts picked up Andrew Luck's fifth-year contract option on Thursday, keeping him under contract through the 2016 NFL season.     

NFL Network's Ian Rapoport first reported the news, and NFL Network's Albert Breer provided the financial details:

The Colts confirmed the decision via their official website.

Nobody has doubted that Luck would remain in Indianapolis. The only question now is how much the Colts will have to pay to keep him long term.

ESPN's Adam Schefter reported on Jan. 18 that the Colts were in the midst of finalizing a new deal for Luck that would be worth $25 million a season.

Most expect him to command more money than Colin Kaepernick, who signed a six-year, $126 million extension with the San Francisco 49ers last offseason. And that's only one in a slew of massive deals for veteran quarterbacks.

Tony Romo also signed a six-year deal worth $108 million, and then there was the six-year, $120.6 million deal the Baltimore Ravens handed Joe Flacco, which made him the highest-paid player in the league at the time.

"[I pay] probably as much attention as any other football fan pays to it," said Luck back in June 2014, per Stephen Holder of The Indianapolis Star. "I don't think I'm necessarily in the spot, personally, to start thinking about that. My agent maybe pays a lot more attention to it than I do."

While Luck may not be giving the subject any thought, you can bet his agent has in fact seen dollar signs after the astronomical contracts handed out to some of the league's best QBs.

Quarterbacks have commanded more and more of their teams' cap commitments recently. With Kaepernick, Romo and Flacco setting the bar, Luck looks sure to raise it.

The 25-year-old is coming off the best statistical season of his NFL career. He threw for 4,761 yards, 40 touchdowns and 16 interceptions in the regular season.

Stephan Savoia/Associated Press

While Luck has unquestionably earned a massive payday, there's always the worry about whether his looming contract extension will handcuff the Colts financially.

In January 2014, Holder wrote that Luck's extension wouldn't hurt in the short term but would have long-term implications:

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The Colts have plenty of flexibility this year and next year. Where things get complicated is beyond that. So, if the Colts, for instance, attempt to sign a player this offseason to a rich, five-year contract, the implications of that deal in Years 3, 4 and 5 have to be weighed very carefully.

And Luck isn't the only variable here. Several members of that 2012 draft class eventually are going to be looking for deals and probably will warrant being re-signed. If tight end Dwayne Allen returns to form next season after his hip surgery, he's probably going to be a keeper. Receiver T.Y. Hilton is more important than ever considering Reggie Wayne is coming off knee surgery and isn't getting any younger.

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Colts general manager Ryan Grigson said at the time, per Holder:

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You have to be smart about. We're always forward thinking. Before we make any type of move, (we) are looking down the line. Because you don't want to hamstring yourself and you don't want to lose your franchise. So, obviously I have very smart people around me that remind me, including our owner. So we'll be smart about that and we'll make sure that we keep our best players here as best we can.

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The Colts wouldn't be the first team to let talented players go as a result of a quarterback's large salary, and they wouldn't be the last. The Ravens either traded or released a few of the veterans integral to their Super Bowl win after extending Flacco.   

The harsh reality is that no player may be more important to Indianapolis than Luck. It's no coincidence that the franchise has seen a reversal of fortunes so immediately after that dreadful 2011 season.

In each of Luck's first three seasons, the Colts finished with an 11-5 record and advanced to the postseason.

Luck was seen as one of the biggest architects of the franchise's resurgence following the departure of Peyton Manning. It's easy to forget that when No. 18 was out injured in 2011, Indy finished 2-14 after starting the year 0-13.

In only three years in the league, Luck has commanded the kind of reverence previously reserved for his predecessor. It's clear his legend with the Colts faithful will only grow moving forward.

Note: All stats were courtesy of NFL.com unless otherwise noted.