Commanders unlikely to be penalized for Andrew Luck tampering allegation

The Washington Commanders are unlikely to face any penalties stemming from tampering allegations involving retired quarterback Andrew Luck, according to two people familiar with the case.

The allegations stemmed from a report published this month that the Commanders had considered Luck last offseason as part of their quarterback deliberations. The Indianapolis Colts retain the contractual NFL rights to Luck, who retired just before the 2019 season at 29.

There probably is “not enough hard evidence” of impermissible contact for the Commanders to be penalized, one of the people with knowledge of the case said, adding that the issue probably is “going to fade away” without being pursued further.

ESPN reported this month that the Commanders had “even phoned the retired Andrew Luck” last year before they made a trade with the Colts for Carson Wentz. A subsequent version of ESPN’s story said the Commanders had “even phoned about retired Andrew Luck.”

It does not appear the NFL launched a formal investigation of the allegation. The Colts had asked the league to look into the matter, a person familiar with the situation said previously.

The Philadelphia Eagles and Arizona Cardinals worked out an exchange of draft choices in this year’s draft because of a tampering issue. The Cardinals acknowledged impermissible contact with Jonathan Gannon, then the Eagles’ defensive coordinator, before hiring him after the Super Bowl as their coach.

The teams made the league aware of the issue but resolved the matter themselves. They swapped third-round selections in this year’s draft, with the Eagles moving up 28 spots; the Cardinals received a fifth-round choice in next year’s draft.

But tampering issues can be resolved by the league. In August, the NFL fined and suspended Miami Dolphins owner Stephen Ross and stripped the team of two draft picks after concluding that the Dolphins committed tampering violations involving quarterback Tom Brady and Sean Payton, the Super Bowl-winning former coach of the New Orleans Saints who is now with the Denver Broncos. The Dolphins lost their first-round choice in this year’s draft and a third-round selection next year.

A person in Luck’s camp said this month that the Commanders did not contact Luck, his father or his uncle, who has served as his agent.

Luck said he was “exhausted” from dealing with injuries when he announced his retirement in August 2019. He has given no indication since that he intends to return to the NFL. Under league rules; he would remain under contract to the Colts if he were to resume playing, and any team wishing to contact him would have to receive permission from the Colts.

Luck, now 33, was selected to four Pro Bowls in his six seasons, all with the Colts.