Philip Rivers is nearing the end of his career with the Los Angeles Chargers, and his playing days won’t be remembered among the greats.
Have a conversation about great quarterbacks. How long until Warren Moon comes up?
Moon was dominant. Despite spending five prime years in the Canadian football League, Moon was a nine-time Pro Bowler. He threw for 49,325 yards and 291 yards. He’s a Hall of Famer.
Yet Moon takes many moons to arrive on your tongue. Why? Name his biggest moment.
Philip Rivers is coming to the end of his terrific career. What’s his moment?
Since becoming a starter in 2006, Rivers has won 123 games over 14 seasons. He’s reached eight Pro Bowls. Still, Rivers has won only five playoff games and reached the AFC Championship Game once. He hasn’t won a division title this decade. Rivers has often been brilliant, only to see his brilliance offset by incompetence around him.
The Chargers have largely been talented during Rivers’ career, but there has always been a spoiler. Bad coaching staffs. Horrid injury luck. Marlon McCree. Rivers struggling to make the big play in the big spot. Relocation rumors. Relocation.
When fans think back on Rivers’ generation of quarterbacks, he’ll slip through history’s cracks. Tom Brady, Peyton Manning, Drew Brees, Aaron Rodgers and Ben Roethlisberger will come up and be bantered about. Eli Manning will add fuel to most debates.
Rivers will wait his turn, being brought up as a remember him instead of a remember that.
Now at 38 years old, Rivers might be out of chances to author a signature game. He has one more game with the Chargers, and then into an unknown future. Where next for the man famous for bolo ties and friendly trash talk?
Surveying the landscape, few contenders need a starting quarterback in 2020.
The Chicago Bears, Carolina Panthers and New England Patriots are viable, but unlikely.
Chicago is going to give Mitchell Trubisky every chance to prove he can play. Cam Newton is seven years younger and if healthy, better at this juncture. New England might make the most sense if Brady leaves, but that’s an enormous if.
For Rivers, why play for a non-contender? Why take a backup role after such an illustrious career?
The other option? Retirement. Perhaps that’s too tough a thought for Rivers. He can still play some, and a Super Bowl, even as a small cog instead of the main machine, would mean everything to a legacy about to be lost into time.
Warren Moon had a great career. Few remember it before the mention of myriad others.
Philip Rivers has enjoyed a great career. Without a storybook ending, few will remember it in the proper perspective.
Power rankings
Top 10 what-could-have-beens in NFL history
1. Greg Cook, QB, Cincinnati Bengals
2. Gale Sayers, RB, Chicago Bears
3. Bo Jackson, RB, Los Angeles Raiders
4. Sterling Sharpe, WR, Green Bay Packers
5. Sean Taylor, S, Washington Redskins
6. Terrell Davis, RB, Denver Broncos
7. Tony Boselli, OT, Jacksonville Jaguars
8. Joe Delaney, RB, Kansas City Chiefs
9. Billy Sims, RB, Detroit Lions
10. Ernie Davis, RB, Cleveland Browns
Quotable
"“It wasn’t me and Eric. E-Dub was on the other side. It was me and Rapp. We was in a form of two-man. We had an adjustment check to it because they was condensed splits. I played my technique, trusting that he was going to be over the top. And he wasn’t. That’s just what happened.”"
– Los Angeles Rams corner Jalen Ramsey, explaining the busted coverage that propelled the San Francisco 49ers to a 34-31 win over L.A. on Saturday night.
Ramsey is correct in his assessment of the bust. Watching the play, it’s clear rookie safety Taylor Rapp widened much too far and allowed Emmanuel Sanders to make an easy 46-yard reception on 3rd and 16, setting up a game-winning Robbie Gould kick.
Still, Ramsey’s actions break the locker room code. Players don’t publicly call out other players for mistakes. Ramsey is only 25 years old, but this is his fourth NFL season. He knows better. Instead of being there for a crestfallen teammate, Ramsey threw him under the proverbial bus.
While some will respect Ramsey’s honesty, his quote won’t play well within the Rams’ room. There’s no doubt longtime veterans such as Eric Weddle and Aaron Donald have had weekly opportunities to blame failures on others. They’ve never done it.
Ramsey is a terrific player. He’s also played all of a half-season with Los Angeles, and hasn’t earned the clout within the building to call out teammates in the media.
Podcast
Random stat
If Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Jameis Winston throws two interceptions on Sunday, he’ll be the first player in league history to amass 30 passing touchdowns and 30 INTs in a single season.
Info learned this week
1. AFC playoff scenarios for Week 17 and what is locked up
Five spots locked up. One opening remaining. Here’s how it looks going into Week 17:
1. Baltimore Ravens (13-2)
2. New England Patriots (12-3)
3. Kansas City Chiefs (11-4)
4. Houston Texans (10-5)
5. Buffalo Bills (10-5)
6. Tennessee Titans (8-7)
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7. Pittsburgh Steelers (8-7)
Let’s start on the locked-in teams. The Ravens earned home-field advantage for the first time in their history, shellacking the Browns. Baltimore can now rest against the Steelers come Sunday, but more on that below. The Bills are also the fifth seed, allowing them to rest and relax against the New York Jets.
The Texans, Patriots and Chiefs are all division winners. Kansas City and Houston will be the third and fourth seeds in some order barring a New England loss (and Chiefs win), so the question is whether either plays hard for the No. 3 spot. Would Bill O’Brien pass on a de facto bye week for seeding improvement on Wild Card Weekend?
The most intriguing situation is the sixth seed. Tennessee needs to beat Houston at NRG Stadium for a playoff berth. A win and in. After losing to the Jets, Pittsburgh now needs to beat a Baltimore team resting its starters while the Titans lose to the Texans.
2. NFC playoff scenarios for Week 17 and what is locked up
With the Minnesota Vikings and Packers playing on Monday, the NFC picture is less clear. Still, here’s how things look presently:
1. San Francisco 49ers (12-3)
2. New Orleans Saints (12-3)
3. Green Bay Packers (11-3)
4. Philadelphia Eagles (8-7)
5. Seattle Seahawks (11-4)
6. Minnesota Vikings (10-4)
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7. Dallas Cowboys (7-8)
Here’s what we know. The Packers and Vikings are in the playoffs. Green Bay wins the NFC North win one more win. Minnesota would need to win out and have a Packers loss to the Lions in Week 17.
On Sunday night, the Seahawks host the 49ers in a winner-take-all affair for both the NFC West. If the 49ers win, they earn home-field throughout the postseason. The loser winds up on the road come Wild Card weekend. San Francisco can’t fall below the fifth seed. The Seahawks could be the No. 6 with a loss and two Minnesota wins.
As for the Saints, they need either Green Bay to lose a game or for Seattle to beat San Francisco for a first-round bye. If that happens and New Orleans beats the Carolina Panthers, it earns a week off. Otherwise, the Saints will slot into the third spot and host Minnesota or Seattle on Wild Card weekend.
3. Cowboys next move will define upcoming decade
The Dallas Cowboys are going to fire Jason Garrett.
Yes, barring a divine miracle, Garrett will be toast this time next week. For the first time in a decade, America’s Team will be interviewing candidates for the most prestigious vacancy in the NFL.
The short list? Urban Meyer, Lincoln Riley and Ron Rivera.
While Riley is the young, sexy name and Rivera is proven at the highest level, Dallas owner Jerry Jones will be intoxicated by the idea of Meyer. Don’t forget, Jones won three Super Bowls in the early 1990s with Jimmy Johnson and Barry Switzer. The duo remain the only two to win both National Championships on the NCAA level and NFL titles. Meyer would potentially be the third.
Whoever Jones decides on, it has to be his best decision since hiring Johnson — a longtime friend and teammate at the University of Arkansas. Jones is 78 years old, and his team is in win-now mode. The roster is teeming with young talent, but it’s getting expensive.
Dallas is in the sweet spot, but nothing in pro football is more fleeting.
4. Moment in Browns game shows why Kitchens needs to go
On the fence about another season of Freddie Kitchens in Cleveland? Consider the following:
With 2:09 remaining in the second quarter — and the Ravens out of timeouts — the Browns led Baltimore 6-0. Facing a 3rd and 1, Kitchens called for a halfback option pass. Kareem Hunt got crushed behind the line, Cleveland punted, and the Ravens proceeded to rip off two touchdowns before halftime. Instead of running with Nick Chubb or Hunt, Kitchens got cute… and got crowned.
This has been a running theme, one which has put Kitchens as the target of Cleveland frustrations for both fans and players alike.
At 6-9, the Browns are officially eliminated from playoff contention. General manager John Dorsey has to ask himself two questions. Is Kitchens the best choice for Baker Mayfield’s development, and is he the best coach available to him? If those answers are no, Kitchens has to be fired.
After watching this season, it’s hard to see either answer being yes.
5. Bengals officially pick No. 1 and other draft thoughts
Joe Burrow can begin shopping for real estate in the Queen City.
With their ridiculous 38-35 loss to the Miami Dolphins, the Bengals locked up the top pick in the 2020 NFL Draft. Barring a shock, Cincinnati will keep the selection and take LSU’s Heisman Trophy winner come April. If the Bengals do take a quarterback, it would be the second time this century Cincinnati has taken a Heisman-winning signal-caller No. 1 overall. The last time? Carson Palmer in 2003.
Beyond the first pick, the New York Giants beat the Redskins, putting Washington in the driver’s seat for Ohio State edge rusher Chase Young at No. 2. A loss against the Cowboys on Sunday firms the draft order up. He’s an immediate game-changer for the Redskins.
Finally, keep an eye on the Dolphins. Miami has three first-round picks to use, including what may be a pair of top-20 choices, depending on Pittsburgh’s fate next weekend. The Dolphins will almost surely take a quarterback, but with the other choices could move up or back, accumulating more ammunition. Miami is well-positioned.
History lesson
The 1994 San Diego Chargers might be the most forgettable Super Bowl participant in NFL history.
An 11-5 AFC West champ, the Chargers were the No. 2 seed and dispatched the Miami Dolphins and Steelers before taking on the 49ers in Super Bowl XXIX. They were summarily pounded 49-26, failing to cover as massive 18-point underdogs.
So why the most forgettable? We’re seen plenty of other middling teams — from a historical perspective — reach the Super Bowl. The 1979 Los Angeles Rams. The 2000 New York Giants. The 1977 Denver Broncos. On and on. Those other teams were perennial playoff contenders and participants. San Diego reached the postseason in 1992, ’94 and ’95 (losing in the Wild Card round) and then not again until 2004.
There was no time to appreciate the Chargers. They showed up, surprised, got rudely trounced and then disappeared. On the ’94 team, only four made the Pro Bowl, including kicker John Carney. The only memorable star? Junior Seau, may he rest in peace.
It’s the only year San Diego ever reached the Super Bowl. And it seems to almost have never happened.
Parting shot
New York football hasn’t been in this rough of shape in some time.
The Jets and Giants are both looking at top-10 picks for the third consecutive offseason. The biggest concern? There’s no easy fix for either side.
Both teams recently drafted a franchise quarterback in the top-six overall picks. Sam Darnold has shown flashes, but the issues outweigh the talent to this point. Daniel Jones was Danny Dimes after one start but can’t stop turning the ball over.
If Darnold and Jones aren’t the answers for their respective teams, the Jets and Giants are nowhere and without a plan to reach somewhere.
Big Blue will soon have a new coaching staff, but what of general manager Dave Gettleman? The embattled GM has done little to improve the roster he inherited a few years back, and yet he might survive. Meanwhile, Gang Green ownership says it’ll retain Adam Gase as head coach. Why? Gase has shown nothing to inspire confidence.
The NFL is better when the Jets and Giants are playing meaningful football in the cold weather of the Meadowlands. We don’t appear to be anywhere near such a moment.