Rodgers on Colts fans booing Luck: ‘I thought it was pretty disgusting’

With stints on injured reserve in 2006 because of a broken foot and 2017 with a broken collarbone, seven games on the inactives list in 2013 with a broken collarbone and last year’s knee injury, Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers knows what it’s like to be rehabbing significant injuries.

Those were difficult times mentally and physically, so Rodgers had some appreciation for why Indianapolis Colts quarterback Andrew Luck announced his retirement on Saturday.

“When you’re on injured reserve, you don’t feel as connected to the team,” Rodgers said at his locker following Monday’s practice. “And when you’re dealing with a frustrating injury, you do have some ups and downs. Fortunately, I had something to look forward to every year. I looked toward coming back strong in March of ’07 and then getting back on the field the other two times I broke my collarbone. I had some light at the end of the tunnel.

“I’m sure where you’re going through stuff where you’re not sure if you’re ever going to play again, like Andrew did, like Alex Smith might be dealing with now, I’m sure there’s some tough days, because at some point you start thinking about your post-career life and the ability to move and function. A lot of guys over the years have had to end their careers because of injuries, [such as] two of my favorite quarterbacks growing up, Steve Young and Troy Aikman. Those are tough decisions. But I think they are decisions made in the interest of your life at 40 and 50 and 60, hopefully.”

Echoing what he said in a national radio interview earlier Monday, Rodgers was critical of Colts fans who booed Luck off the field after ESPN.com’s Adam Schefter broke the stunning news of Luck’s retirement.

“I thought it was pretty disgusting,” Rodgers said in the video posted above.

While most NFL players and reporters have supported Luck, there has been some blowback. Former Packers linebacker Brady Poppinga, for instance, questioned Luck’s timing in how it leaves the Colts – a potential Super Bowl contender – high and dry. Jacoby Brissett went 4-11 in place of an injured Luck in 2017.

“I give him a lot of credit for making a tough decision, and I think he did it with enough time,” Rodgers said. “It lets them move forward with Jacoby and figure out what they want to do with their roster. To me, it is a selfless act because if he’s not going to play this season he could have sat on IR and taken a paycheck. But he’s making a decision and I give him a lot of credit for it.”