It turns out that veteran quarterback Phillip Rivers was close to making retirement plans before Indianapolis Colts came calling. Speaking with reporters over the weekend, Rivers admitted he was ready to call it quits if no offers came his way this offseason.
Rivers spent the first 16 years of his career with the Los Angeles Chargers, but the two sides agreed to go their separate ways after the 2019 season wrapped up. This cleared the way for Rivers to become a free agent for the first time in his career, but the 39-year-old knew he might not get the opportunity he was looking for.
“I think really where we settled in is I still love to play, certainly not coming off my best year [in 2019], but I know I still can play at a high level,” said Rivers. “It was one of those deals where we said if there’s nothing else out there then that’ll be our answer. I don’t want to just try to hang on to play.”
Rivers didn’t have to wait too much, as Colts came through with a $25 million offer.
“I was still excited about playing and hoping to get another opportunity to continue my career and certainly thankful that it’s going to be with the Colts.” he added.
Philip Rivers had a storied career with the Chargers, despite failing to get a team to a Super Bowl. Besides earning eight Pro Bowl nods, Rivers set a number of franchise records along the way, including those for games played (227), wins (123), and passing touchdowns (397).
