Andrew Luck Says Pushing 'A Little Too Hard' Contributed to Arm Injury Setback

Andrew Luck offered a mixed update regarding the recovery of his injured shoulder Monday, saying he "pushed a little too hard" during his fall rehabilitation and "paid for it," according to Stephen Holder of the Indianapolis Star. 

"I'm not a perfect feeling athlete yet," Luck noted, per Bob Kravitz of WTHR.com. "Don't wanna put myself through this again, so I'm continuing to work on my throwing technique."

He added of his recovery: "I've skipped steps before and I've paid for it before, and I'm not gonna do that again."

Luck did suggest that he was making progress, however, noting, "If I wasn't making progress, I would freak out," per Holder. He also said his right arm is “feeling really good," according to George Bremer of CNHI Sports Indiana.

"Still a bit of the journey left. Wanna be on the field with my teammates. Wanna be the best I can be," Luck continued, per Kravitz, adding: "Not changing my throwing motion, but there are things I can do better from the ground up and that's what been working on. Using my entire body."

Luck also hinted that playing hurt in the past may have contributed to his recent injury woes

As Holder wrote, "One of the things Andrew Luck admitted in a vague way was that there might have been some impact from his decision to play hurt in 2015-16. This is a bigger factor in his issues than anyone has really admitted, from what I've been told."

Luck, 28, missed the entire 2017 season after requiring surgery to repair a torn labrum before the season. When healthy, he's established himself as one of the top quarterbacks in the game, throwing for 4,240 yards, 31 touchdowns and 13 interceptions in the 2016 campaign. 

In the past three seasons, however, injuries have been the primary storyline in Luck's career. He also missed nine games in 2015 due to a lacerated kidney. 

As for his current recovery, Luck noted there's a timetable for when he'll return to throwing and doesn't expect to do much over the summer, per Kravitz.