The future of Andrew Luck, touted as a Hall of Famer when he was drafted No1 overall in 2012, is increasingly cloudy after it was confirmed on Thursday he will miss the entire 2017 season. Hours later, Houston Texans sources told NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport they fear their quarterback Deshaun Watson, who is breaking records for a rookie, has torn his ACL and will also miss the rest of the year.

Watson’s injury was apparently non-contact, and Rapoport reported an MRI confirmed the injury. Watson is expected to be out for up to nine months but should be fit for the start of the 2018 season.

Watson had exploded on to the NFL stage - last weekend he threw for 402 yards and four touchdowns against the Seattle Seahawks, who boast one of the best defenses in the league. He led the league in passing touchdowns, Total QBR and rushing yards for a quarterback. Houston also led the league in points per game with Watson as quarterback. The Texans will now turn to Tom Savage, who was underwhelming in his one start this season. The team had already lost their best defensive player – JJ Watt – for the season.



“It’s just unfortunate. It’s terrible news,” said Seattle Seahawks cornerback Richard Sherman. “Feel terrible for him and his family. He had such a bright future. He still has a bright future but his rookie year is cut short.

Before Watson’s injury emerged, the Indianapolis Colts went as far as to deny that Luck’s career is in jeopardy. He had surgery on his shoulder in January but the area still feels sore and he visited a doctor this week.

“The consensus from all the doctors is to continue rehab, to be patient and continue rehab,” the Colts general manager, Chris Ballard, said on Thursday. “The shoulder is subjective and after a surgery everybody’s different, everybody rehabs at a different way. So we’re going to shut his throwing down and we’re going to continue to rehab. We’re going to continue hard rehab.

“We think for the long-term interest of Andrew this is the best course of action. I’ve heard all sorts of rumors about ‘career-ending.’ That’s not the case here. I’ve not got that from one doctor. Career-ending is putting him out on the field before he’s ready to play. That’s where you should be concerned.”

Luck said he hoped the experience would strengthen him. “I wish I was better and 100% this season, but that’s not the case,” Luck said. “I know I’ll be better from this. I know I’ll be a better quarterback, team-mate, person and player from this, and I’m excited for the future.”

Luck played every game in his first three seasons in the league, and improved in each one: in 2014 he threw for 40 touchdowns. But he only played seven games in 2015 after lacerating his kidney, and missed one game last season with a concussion. Some believed the Colts did not build a strong enough offensive line to protect a quarterback of Luck’s quality.

The 28-year-old now finds himself in a situation where there is no definite timetable for his return – his shoulder has bothered him since September 2015. The Colts coach Chuck Pagano said he was confident Luck would be back. “Andrew is frustrated. Andrew wants to be out there. Andrew wants to be fighting with his teammates. He’s a great warrior, he’s a great competitor and he’s a great player, one of the best in this league. He’ll be back. He’s going to get right. This is the right thing to do for him and the right thing to do for the organization. He’ll be back.”