A lot of current and former NFL players have applauded Colts QB Andrew Luck in his decision to retire a few weeks shy of his 30th birthday as a result of an accumulation of injuries — and the joy that has been sapped from him — endured in his career.

But perhaps the most interesting things I have read on the subject are from a pair of retired offensive linemen. Among them: Geoff Schwartz, who spent 2012 with the Vikings, wrote a long piece on SB Nation in which he detailed his three offseasons spent rehabbing injuries. He wrote:

"That was just three years of rehab. Luck practically spent his entire career doing this. He'd fix one body part, and another would be broken. Imagine you're fixing a car. The engine busts. It's repaired, but then the belt breaks. Then the brakes go. Over and over. Thus, it's no surprise his joy for the game, or more distinctly, his joy of the process of preparing, has faded."

Read Michael Rand's blog at startribune.com/randball. michael.rand@startribune.com.