Giants' Josh Mauro, Michael Thomas look forward to facing Colts' Andrew Luck
After sitting out last year with a shoulder injury, Colts quarterback Andrew Luck has come back strong. Getty Images/Streeter Lecka Credit: Getty Images/Streeter Lecka
Josh Mauro isn’t much of a trash talker, but if he gets a sack on Sunday against the Colts, the Giants defensive lineman is likely to make sure the quarterback knows about it. That’s because the quarterback will be Andrew Luck, a college teammate of Mauro’s at Stanford.
“Even if I just hit him, I’m going to say something to him,” Mauro said. “But the thing with Luck is, after being his teammate for three years and then watching him after, he doesn’t really get rattled. So you can say whatever to him, you can hit him all you want. He’s a really tough quarterback and he’s just going to keep doing his thing and bounce back.”
Mauro isn’t the only former Stanford player who’ll be looking to bring down Luck — or pick him off — on Sunday. Giants safety Michael Thomas also was a Cardinal with Luck. In fact, the two have known each other since they were high school opponents in the Houston area.
“It’s going to be fun,” Thomas said. “Going against somebody who you grinded with in college and to see him have success and now getting the chance to play against him, it’s going to be fun. We competed against you in college, now we get to do it at the highest level.”
Mauro and Thomas have been rooting for Luck this season as he has returned to form from shoulder surgery and has the Colts on the brink of a postseason berth.
“From a personal standpoint, I’m really happy for him to bounce back from the injury like he did,” Mauro said. “But obviously, now, from a competitive standpoint, I hope we just thrash him.”
Tom Rock began covering sports for Newsday in 1996 and became its NFL columnist in 2022. He previously was Newsday's Giants beat writer beginning in 2008.
More Giants
