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Andrew Luck shocked the National Football League nearly seven years ago when he abruptly retired at the age of 29, walking away from his NFL career just weeks before the 2019 season. Fast forward to 2026, and one of his former teammates commented claiming to know what was causing it behind the scenes.

Former Indianapolis Colts tight end Eric Ebron, who played for the team from 2018–19, said on my soul Podcast that then-Colts general manager Chris Ballard had pressured Luck into retirement after issuing a mandate that he play despite chronic pain.

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The comments resulted in Luck, who rarely speaks publicly, sending an email to FOX 59 Indianapolis’ Mike Chappell to correct the record. He shared that he still has a strong relationship with Ballard to this day and that what Ebron said on the podcast is a lie.

“Chris and I had a wonderful partnership, especially through my decision to retire, and we remain close. Any notion of internal pressures influencing my decision is unfounded.”

Former Indianapolis Colts QB Andrew Luck on rumors that pressure from then-GM Chris Ballard led him to retire

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It’s not entirely surprising that Ebron, who never even spent two full seasons as Luck’s teammate, might not have the most accurate information about what happened in Indianapolis. We’re also in an era where players are making podcast appearances more regularly or hosting their own, and viral clips bring attention and views to podcasts that they might not otherwise get.

Detailed reporting on Luck’s career in August 2025, primarily by Jack Keefer of The Athletic, revealed why he retired. The 6-foot-4 quarterback’s body had already begun to deteriorate rapidly, and the rigors of football and rehabilitation from all the injuries took a heavy toll on both him personally and his family. Now serving as general manager of his alma mater Stanford, Luck is happier and living the life he wants.

Matt Johnson is the senior NFL and college football editor for Sportsknot. His work including the weekly NFL and college… More about Matt Johnson

Internal discord within the WWE locker room has reportedly come to the surface following a social media exchange between WWE Women’s Champion Jade Cargill and Rhea Ripley.

While the rivalry is set to headline WrestleMania 42, new reports reveal that the “working shoot” nature of their online feud – specifically Cargill’s accusation of Replay playing “politics” with creative – was not an accepted part of the storyline.

According to PWInsider Elite, multiple sources have directly blamed Cargill for the public fallout, noting that his conduct has rubbed many colleagues the wrong way. The situation escalated further on Monday, when other members of the women’s division, including Chelsea Green and Piper Niven, took to social media to defend Ripley.

Green praised Ripley as a “compassionate and respectful” professional, a comment Cargill interpreted as a personal attack. This led to a confrontation with Niven, who told the champion that “the world doesn’t revolve around you” and criticized his ring ability.

“The back-and-forth between Jade Cargill and others was not prepared for by WWE creative, with multiple sources placing the blame for the outburst on Cargill. A source explained that Cargill has been criticized by many talents for how she rubs others the wrong way and when the back-and-forth with Rhea started, it wasn’t hard for others to jump in and express their opinions,” PWInsider reported.

Sources backstage also pointed to Cargill’s previous absence as a source of underlying tension. While it was previously reported that Cargill spent time at the WWE Performance Center in late 2024 and early 2025 to recover from undisclosed injuries, some reports now claim that the hiatus was intended to resolve “personal issues” and reduce locker room friction.

Talents have reportedly described Cargill’s behavior as “unsafe”, which suggests that although the roster is happy to help bring him up as a champion, the respect is not always felt the same way. Ripley herself appeared to address the situation in a scathing Instagram Story on March 3, which was quickly deleted.

In the post he wrote, “Not fun. Not friends. Learn to work and never live to defame someone’s actual human character by ‘breaking the fourth wall’.”

It was awkward, unexpected and highly unique.

In retrospect, Liam Coen butchering his opening ‘Duval’ announcement was the perfect way to proclaim he was the ideal new head coach for the Jacksonville Jaguars.

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There’s only one way to say Duval right

“Duuuuval,” said a smiling Coen, in a clip that instantly went viral and turned the Jacksonville rookie HC into an easy target on social media.

The internet reaction was sudden, sharp and unrelenting.

“I love Liam Coen but this is whiter than an Iowa DB room,” Mike Golic Jr tweeted.

“Liam Coen with the worst sounding #DUUUVAL I have ever heard uh oh,” a fan posted.

“0-17,” another fan wrote.

“That made me so uncomfortable ,” a fourth fan said. “But the dude’s an offensive genius so f*** it.”

ESPN’s Pat McAfee also publicly doubted whether Coen — who spurned the Tampa Bay Buccaneers before signing a five-year contract with the Jaguars — could handle his new job.

“Whenever you see this, it’s tough,” McAfee said. “It’s hard not to say, ‘This guy’s got no chance to win.’ There’s no way anybody is going to take him seriously.”