Andrew Luck will make the trip to Carolina on Monday. It's a trip he should've made in 2011.

The Colts QB was projected to go No. 1 overall to the Panthers that year, but with a fourth year at Stanford still available, he prioritized his education instead.

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"Finishing my education was important to me," Luck said, per ESPN. "I needed to stay an extra year to get that done. I felt like I still needed to grow and learn as a football player, and college would give me that opportunity to grow and learn."

It was rumored Luck returned to college to avoid going to the Panthers, but that hair-brained theory was quickly dismissed.

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"Absolutely not," he added. "And I hope people don't think that."

What people are starting to think, however, is how much of a mistake returning to Stanford was.

Take nothing away from Luck his first three seasons. Under center, he amassed 33 wins and an appearance in the AFC Championship game. But the wear is starting to show in Indianapolis.

The franchise's stability remains a huge question mark. As if Jim Irsay popping pills in a Toyota Highlander isn't enough, per USA Today, the growing friction between head coach Chuck Pagano and general manager Ryan Grigson is causing a split in 2015.

The Colts haven't exactly done a perfect job of surrounding Luck with the proper talent, either. Seemingly every other week the team finds itself facing a huge deficit. Now in his fourth season, Luck has 17 TDs when down by three scores, per USA Today.

Tom Brady -- in his entire career -- has 12.

Speaking of Brady, Luck's date with the 2012 Draft permanently married him to the Patriots. It's been nothing more than an abusive relationship.

The Panthers, by comparison, have figured it out. After consecutive NFC South division crowns, the team is off to an impressive 6-0 start and an MVP campaign is already in the works for Cam Newton.

This is the life an educated man passed on.

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