SuperBook pulls Colts-Chargers line with Luck's status unclear
The Week 1 contest between the Los Angeles Chargers and Indianapolis Colts is already being defined by which Chargers might not take the field, with Melvin Gordon holding out and Los Angeles starters Keenan Allen, Derwin James, and Russell Okung all battling injuries.
Yet it's injury concerns surrounding Colts quarterback Andrew Luck that have forced oddsmakers at the Westgate LV SuperBook to take the game off the board - and it likely won't return until next week at a far different price.
Colts owner Jim Irsay said Tuesday that Luck is dealing with a bone injury in his lower left leg. On Wednesday, general manager Chris Ballard revealed the quarterback has a high-ankle issue, meaning he'll miss the preseason and require sufficient practice reps to be cleared to play in Week 1.
Indianapolis officials have been coy about Luck's status, but ESPN's Chris Mortensen reported Thursday the team has "guarded optimism" about his Week 1 availability.
SuperBook oddsmakers aren't so sure. The Chargers were three-point favorites (-120) before coming off the board Wednesday morning, with oddsmakers in a holding pattern regarding Luck's status.
"We'll try to make our best guess whether he's going to play or not," SuperBook oddsmaker Ed Salmons told theScore on Friday. "If I made a price, I'd make 'no' a big favorite."
Salmons said the Week 1 contest will likely stay off the shop's oddsboard until there's a clearer update.
"From what I've been told, they're going to announce something Monday or Tuesday of next week," he said. "Just from reading between the lines, I think he'll probably miss the first month of the year."
Should Luck miss Week 1, Salmons said, the line would likely jump to Chargers -6.5, even with Los Angeles' own injury woes.
James, the Chargers' star safety, reportedly suffered a stress fracture in his right foot Thursday and will miss "significant" time, but Salmons said the development won't have an effect on the line once it's posted. And Gordon, the star running back whose holdout threatens to drag into the season?
"I don't think Melvin Gordon is gonna move the needle in any direction," Salmons said.