Opinion: Colts signing of Philip Rivers leads to shock

Philip Rivers (Google Images)

The initial reaction throughout the National Football League this week is around the Indianapolis Colts with the question of…They did what?

Yes, with the unthinkable, the Colts have brought back future Hall of Famer Philip Rivers out of retirement. Yes folks, Rivers just might start for the Colts when they face the Seattle Seahawks on Sunday.

It is rather funny. I once wrote a piece for The Sporting Base dated August 4, 2021…“Could Philip Rivers return to the NFL after all?” The answer ended up being yes, even though it took four years, four months and six days to come to fruition.

The last time Rivers played in the NFL was the 2020 season with the Indianapolis Colts at the age of 39. He played for the Colts in the AFC Wildcard game on January 9, 2021. Rivers had 309 yards passing and two touchdowns, but it was not enough as the Colts lost 27-24 to the Buffalo Bills. Buffalo’s win made NFL headlines, because it was their first postseason victory since 1995.

Now Rivers is 44 years old. He turned 44 on Monday, and a day later signed a contract with the Colts. The fact that the Colts are taking a chance on a quarterback, who led the NFL in passing touchdowns 17 years ago while with the San Diego Chargers is quite frankly mind boggling.

The reason why Indianapolis made the emergency hire came down to injuries. The Colts are without Daniel Jones (torn right Achilles), Riley Leonard (knee), and Anthony Richardson (eye). A week ago we talked about the Colts being uncomfortable with Leonard. Now they are uncomfortable with signing many other younger quarterbacks who were NFL free agents. They are taking their chances on a veteran who has 63,440 passing yards, the seventh most in NFL history, and a quarterback with 17 seasons of NFL experience.

It will be interesting if the Colts start Rivers nob Sunday. The only other option is Brett Rypien (nephew of former Super Bowl MVP Mark Rypien), who is on the Indy practice squad. One thing Rivers must keep in mind. This is an excellent Seattle defense, which is ranked second best in the NFL.

The Colts are at 8-5 and second behind the Jacksonville Jaguars in the AFC South. After a promising start, the Colts have now lost three straight games.