Philip Rivers is back and rejoining the Indianapolis Colts, five years after the 44-year-old grandfather last played in an NFL game.
The Colts suddenly need to fill the quarterback position after two were injured in Sunday’s 36-19 loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars.
advertise
Daniel Jones is out for the season with an Achilles injury, and his replacement, third-string rookie Riley Leonard, is also dealing with knee issues.
Backup quarterback Anthony Richardson is already out with a facial injury, so Rivers practiced with the Colts on Monday — his 44th birthday.
The father of 10 has been the head coach at St. Michael Catholic High School in Alabama and has joined the team’s practice squad.
This makes Rivers the oldest active player in the NFL, surpassing Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Aaron Rodgers, who turned 42 last week.
After spending the first 16 years of his NFL career with the Chargers, Rivers joined the Colts in 2020 and led the Colts to an 11-5 record, but failed miserably at the first hurdle of the playoffs.
advertise
The Colts, the team’s leading team this season but have lost their past three games to slip to 8-5, have promoted Brett Rypien from the practice squad to the active roster, making the 29-year-old eligible for Sunday’s game against the Seattle Seahawks.
Rivers ranks seventh in NFL all-time passing yards (63,440) and sixth in touchdown passes (421).
Colts head coach Sean Steichen served as offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach during Rivers’ time with the Chargers.
Rivers’ eldest son is the same age as Colts rookie Leonard, 23, and before this year’s draft — when he was a sixth-round pick out of Indianapolis — Leonard worked with Rivers, the veteran who lives in his hometown of Fairhope, Alabama.
advertise
“This is going to be the most extraordinary storyline”
Analysis by NFL expert Phoebe Schecter
I like it. I think this is awesome. I mean, it says a lot about how this league thinks and feels about their current quarterback, right, because he doesn’t have a lot of time playing, but you think he’s going to be the best guy for the job to be able to come back to the team.
You know, the Colts saw what happened when Joe Flacco got off the couch [at the Browns in 2023]so I think they think he can bring a little extra spark, but even getting him on the practice squad, they can see what he can do with his speed and his decision-making.
advertise
Imagine if Philip Rivers was the reason the Colts made a deep run in the playoffs. I mean, it’s going to be the most extraordinary storyline.
You can’t make up for that at all because when he retired, he did it in a very romantic way and it all came down to field goals. So I hope they stick to it and then he can romance his way into the night again.