After 17 long seasons in the NFL, Phillip Rivers decided it was time to hang up his cleats and retire.
Rivers concluded his final season with the Indianapolis Colts as their starting quarterback. The eight-time Pro-Bowler led the Colts to the playoffs. Prior to joining Indianapolis, the quarterback spent 16 seasons with the San Diego/Los Angeles Chargers.
During his time with the Chargers, he became a Pro Bowler and won the NFL Comeback Player of The Year award. Rivers was able to lead the Chargers to the playoffs, but he was unable to lead them to the Super Bowl. In 2007, the quarterback led the tea, to the AFC championship game against the New England Patriots. That was the farthest the 39-year-old would get in the playoffs.
In 2020, after 16 seasons with the Chargers, both quarterback and the team agreed that he would not resign with them. The 39-year-old signed a one-year deal worth $25 million with the Colts, who themselves were looking for a quarterback after Andrew Luck retired. In his final season, he led the Colts to 11 wins and five losses record. The team entered the playoffs as a wild card but was eliminated 27-24 by the Bufalo Bills.
Rivers will retire with a career passing yards of 63,440 and 421 touchdown passes. Those career numbers mean that the quarterback is fifth in all-time career passing yards and touchdown passes. The 39-year-old will begin his post-career in Alabama, where he will become a head coach at St. Michael High in Fairhope.
