The Indianapolis Colts have signed Philip Rivers to be their next quarterback.
CBS Sports NFL insider Jason La Canfora reported earlier in the week that the Colts were finalizing a deal with Rivers. NFL Network's Ian Rapoport reported Rivers will sign a one-year deal with the Colts worth roughly $25 million. On Saturday, the Colts announced the signing.
Indianapolis has been linked to Rivers for some time, and the 38-year old quarterback has found his new home.
"Philip is one of the most decorated quarterbacks in the NFL and we are fortunate to add an experienced player of his caliber to our organization," Colts general manager Chris Ballard said in a press release. "His familiarity with our coaching staff and offensive system in addition to his experience were attractive qualities during our evaluation process. Philip is a fierce competitor and his veteran leadership will be crucial in the continued development of our young roster."
Rivers will be reunited with Colts offensive coordinator Nick Sirianni, who spent five seasons as an offensive assistant with the Los Angeles Chargers, who Rivers played for from 2004 to 2019. Colts coach Frank Reich was the offensive coordinator for two seasons with the Chargers, spending three total years with Rivers in San Diego.
Reich was the Chargers' quarterbacks coach in 2013, when Rivers led the NFL by completing 69.5% of his passes, the highest completion percentage of his career. Along with throwing for 4,478 yards and 32 touchdowns that season, Rivers also took care of the football, throwing just 11 interceptions while earning Pro Bowl honors.
Rivers joins a Colts team that faded down the stretch last season, going 2-7 in their last nine games. The past five games were particularly bad for the Colts defense, as they gave up 30-plus points in four of the last five games, allowing 29.4 points per game during the stretch.
Part of the Colts' struggles were also on Jacoby Brissett, who started 15 games, going 7-8 in his starts while completing 60.2% of his passes for 2,942 yards, 18 touchdowns and six interceptions for an 88.0 passer rating. Brissett didn't throw a touchdown pass nor for over 200 yards in his last three games played, finishing with a passer rating lower than 70 on all three occurrences.
Brissett's struggles forced the Colts to look elsewhere for their starting quarterback, especially after Andrew Luck's stunning retirement last August and with he Colts missing the playoffs in four of the past five seasons.
In his final season with the Chargers, Rivers completed 66% of his passes for 4,615 yards with 23 touchdowns and he played all 16 games for the 14th consecutive season. While Rivers finished fourth in the NFL in passing yards, he finished third in the NFL with 20 interceptions and had an 88.5 passer rating. His touchdown percentage of 3.9 was his lowest since becoming the Chargers starting quarterback in 2006 and his adjusted net yards gained per pass attempt (7.1) was his lowest since 2012.
Rivers is currently sixth all-time with 59,271 passing yards and sixth in touchdowns (397). His 224 consecutive regular season starts are the second-most all time.
