After a five-year hiatus, quarterback Philip Rivers is back with the Indianapolis Colts and joined their practice squad. The potential Hall of Famer spent most of the 2020s in retirement, but the eight-time Pro Bowler is back in the NFL and will help his former team push for the playoffs.
Philip Rivers, Indianapolis Colts, Agree to Contract
This is one of the most surprising signings in recent memory, as a string of injuries forced the Colts to bring Philip Rivers out of retirement. Backup quarterback Anthony Richardson suffered an eye injury earlier in the year, Daniel Jones tore his Achilles against the Jacksonville Jaguars, and rookie third-string quarterback Riley Leonard is battling through an injury of his own. At 8-5, the Colts must do something to try and salvage their season, and Rivers was the best option available.
At his best, Rivers was one of the game’s premier quarterbacks. While he never matched the greatness of Tom Brady or Peyton Manning, the former first-round pick was a top 5-6 quarterback at the peak of his powers. During his 16 years with the Chargers, the quarterback completed 64.7% of his passes for 59,271 yards, 297 touchdowns, and 198 interceptions while going 123-101.
While Philip Rivers eventually surrendered the starting job to rookie Justin Herbert, the North Carolina State product spent his final season with the Indianapolis Colts. Proving he still had a little something left in his tank, Rivers went 11-5 during his age-39 season, guiding the Colts to the playoffs before narrowly losing to the Buffalo Bills. He hasn’t played a snap since; however, he would have come out of retirement to start for the San Francisco 49ers in Super Bowl LVII had the injury-ravaged squad defeated the Philadelphia Eagles in the NFC Championship Game.
Main Photo: Jamie Germano – Imagn Images
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