Philip Rivers has aged too much to be effective for the Colts
By John Buhler
We love Philip Rivers, but he needs to accept his football career is over. He has aged too much to be an effective quarterback for the Indianapolis Colts.
Father Time is and always will be undefeated.
It’s been a beautiful ride in Southern California for one Philip Rivers. He’s likely Canton bound at this point, one of the greatest quarterbacks to never play for a Lombardi Trophy in the Super Bowl era. He has left San Diego in favor of the Florida Panhandle. For a football player in his late 30s, that sounds an awful lot like retirement.
Rivers says he wants to keep playing, but he fell off a cliff physically last year for the Bolts. Though only dozens of Chargers fans saw him attempt to laboriously throw the football down the field, he needs to channel his inner Dan Fouts and not play for anybody else, especially the Indianapolis Colts.
The idea of playing in Frank Reich‘s offense again in a winnable division and inside of a dome could be alluring. However, Rivers has too big of a quarterback brand to step on Peyton Manning‘s turf. The feeling might be mutual, as the Colts may think Rivers can be better than what they have in Jacoby Brissett. But do we really want to see Rivers throw 20 interceptions again? No, we don’t.
Johnny Unitas on the Chargers, Joe Namath on the Los Angeles Rams, Brett Favre on the New York Jets. Even if Rivers did play like Favre on the Vikings or Joe Montana on the Kansas City Chiefs, he’ll never be able to carve out his own niche in Indianapolis. Lucas Oil Stadium is the house Manning built. Rivers has far less in the tank then when Manning went to the Denver Broncos.
Even if Rivers decides to keep playing and goes to the Colts, he’ll be the second-best quarterback in the division behind the Houston Texans’ Deshaun Watson. The Jacksonville Jaguars have won the AFC South more recently and the Tennessee Titans played in the AFC Championship game last season. It’s been a long five years since the Colts last won the division they used to dominate.
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Ultimately, the Colts are better served drafting Brissett’s replacement with the No. 13 overall pick than rolling with Rivers in 2020.
Brissett can win the Colts games this year, but someone like Utah State’s Jordan Love would solve more of Indianapolis’ offensive problems than Rivers’ declining skill set. T