As silly as it sounded, the Indianapolis Colts were hoping that 44-year-old grandpa Philip Rivers could give them a spark at the quarterback position as the team attempts to save its season with Daniel Jones now on injured reserve. Rivers has done that so far, as the Colts have a 13-6 halftime lead over the Seattle Seahawks.
The quarterback that hasn't played football in nearly five years has looked more comfortable than anyone on Seattle's offense through two quarters, and he even threw a seven-yard touchdown to Josh Downs after the two-minute warning. The Seahawks went three-and-out on three of their five first-half possessions, and heard plenty of boos from their home fans.
Is this happening? Is a 44-year-old quarterback straight off the couch about to lead his team to a win against a 10-3 squad? Follow along in the live blog below, as we break down this matchup as it happens.
A change in momentum? The Colts went three-and-out for just the second time all game to start the third quarter, as Philip Rivers couldn't connect with an open Josh Downs on third-and-4. The throw wasn't bad. The two just weren't on the same page. Downs didn't see it.
Seattle added its third field goal of the game on its opening drive of the second half, as Myers is good from 46 yards out. Sam Darnold went 43 yards on 11 plays before the drive stalled.
Rashid Shaheed attempted to draw a PI on third-and-7, but he basically just gave up on the play. Good no-call. In fact, I wonder if the flag would have been thrown if he didn't give up on the play while the ball was in the air.
IND 13
SEA 9
9:49 remaining in the third quarter
First downs: IND 10 SEA 4
Total yards: IND 152 SEA 80
Third downs: IND 4-8 SEA 1-6
Penalties: IND 2-9 yards SEA 4-25 yards
TOP: IND 19:02 SEA 10:58
Philip Rivers 10/16 81 yards 1 TD
Sam Darnold 8/12 84 yards
Jonathan Taylor 16 rushes 58 yards
Kenneth Walker 5 rushes 6 yards
Zach Charbonnet 1 rush -2 yards
Michael Pittman Jr. 3 catches 26 yards
Josh Downs 2 catches 9 yards 1 TD
Cooper Kupp 3 catches 31 yards
Jaxon Smith-Njigba 3 catches 31 yards
Following the Rivers TD pass, Sam Darnold rebounded and led a nine-play, 44-yard drive that was capped by a 52-yard Myers FG. Seahawks trail the Colts by seven points at the end of the first half.
IND 13
SEA 6
There's no question the Colts have been the better team in the first half. Philip Rivers just led a 10-play, 58-yard drive, and capped it by throwing a 7-yard TD to Josh Downs!
The Colts are now up by 10 points! They were 14-point underdogs! Embarrassing for the Seahawks.
Four possessions for Seattle, and three three-and-outs. Yikes.
Seahawks fans in attendance are BOOING after their team lost 10 yards on this most recent three-and-out.
Sam Darnold's unit has yet to find a rhythm. That's surprising to say given this team was favored by 14 points.
The Colts are now up 6-3 after a 54-yard FG from Blake Grupe. It was a short, 17-yard, six-play drive.
Philip Rivers is now 5 of 11 for 42 yards, and I have to say, he's playing better than I thought he would. No egregious misses despite being out of the game for nearly five years. Michael Pittman Jr. has been his favorite receiver, as he's caught 3 of 4 targets for 26 yards.
IND 6
SEA 3
8:26 second quarter
Barner has picked up two penalties early in this matchup. He had an illegal shift on a third down on Seattle's first possession, and then just negated a 15-yard gain by lining up offsides.
Seahawks punt from deep in their own territory.
The offenses are copying each other. After the Colts and Seahawks traded punts, the two squads traded field goals. Sam Darnold's unit went 34 yards on six plays, and Jason Myers hits from 47 yards out to tie the game at 3 apiece.
It looked like Seattle really had something going, as the offense picked up 29 yards on its first two plays. However, the Colts run defense then bottled up Kenneth Walker.
Philip Rivers engineers an 11-play, 41-yard drive, and kicker Blake Grupe connects from 42 yards out to give the Colts a 3-0 lead.
Rivers has completed 3 of 8 passes for 31 yards. He doesn't have the same kind of "zip" on the ball, but he definitely understands anticipation. I wonder if the Seahawks are going to get more aggressive in coverage. Press man-to-man.
Philip Rivers had a better first drive than Sam Darnold and the Seahawks did! Seattle picked up just seven yards before having to punt. An AJ Barner illegal shift on third down was declined. Kenneth Walker rushed twice while Darnold completed his lone pass attempt for 6 yards.
As one could have predicted, the Colts' offensive game plan is going to center around Jonathan Taylor and getting the ball out quickly in the passing game. Taylor carried four times for 15 yards on Indy's opening possession, while Rivers completed 1 of 4 passes for 12 yards.
He didn't throw the cleanest spiral in the world, but the veteran did take some chances downfield.
Today, Rivers will become the fifth quarterback to start an NFL game at age 44 or older. He adds his name to a list that includes Tom Brady, Vinny Testaverde, Warren Moon and Steve DeBerg.
Sunday marks 1,800 days since Rivers' last NFL game, according to CBS Sports Research. It's the longest layoff by a 40-year-old starting quarterback in NFL history. The previous record was DeBerg in 1998 (1,777 days). Rivers is older than Steichen and Seahawks coach Mike Macdonald, making it the sixth instance since 1950 where a starting quarterback was older than both head coaches in a game. In fact, Rivers is older than 13 NFL head coaches.
The Seahawks are a tough matchup for Philip Rivers right off the bat, as Seattle already matched its win total from last season at 10-3 and boasts a ferocious defense. This unit ranks second in the NFL in points per game allowed (17.4), yards per play allowed (4.5) and third-down defense (33%). Seattle has allowed just nine total points over the past two games, and leads the NFL with six non-offensive touchdowns.
Unfortunately for the Colts, the Week 15 matchup against Seattle isn't the only tough game remaining on the schedule. Indy actually has the toughest remaining schedule in the NFL (.692 opponent win percentage). Three of the Colts' final four opponents rank top seven in the NFL in pressures.
