The Indianapolis Colts are bringing back quarterback Philip Rivers. The team is signing him to the practice squad initially. He last played in the NFL in 2020, his only season with Indy. He's likely a future Pro Football Hall of Famer, but he is also 44 years old and has never been a QB who runs very well.
If Indy were getting Rivers at 38 years old, that might be excellent. Getting him back now simply smacks of desperation. Or does it?
Rivers has a previous working relationship with quarterback Riley Leonard, both in the offseason in general and as part of pre-draft workouts, specifically. Indy could simply be signing Rivers to help further mentor Leonard. NFL insider Ian Rapoport suggested as much recently.
Indianapolis Colts make it official and sign retired quarterback Philip Rivers
Does that make sense? It might as much as Philip Rivers coming back to the Indianapolis Colts in general does. Expecting the retired quarterback to suddenly pick up head coach Shane Steichen's offense and master it with four games left against a bunch of very good teams might be expecting too much.
Thinking Rivers, who also lives near Leonard in Alabama, could help the quarterback who was named QB3 for Indy at the beginning of the season, is far more logical. The older quarterback wouldn't be hired as a coach for four games, so signing him as a player would be the way to go.
One must feel for veteran Brett Rypien, who has spent a lot of the season on Indianapolis's practice squad. He has played in 11 games in six years and has four starts to his name. Still, the implication is that general manager Chris Ballard would rather bring back Rivers than take any chances on putting Rypien into a game.
Anthony Richardson, who lost the battle for QB1 to Daniel Jones in the preseason, is unavailable as well. He broke an orbital bone in pregame warmups before Week 9, and is seemingly nowhere close to returning. He might need to be the starter in 2026, though.
Daniel Jones tore the Achilles tendon in his right leg, and that will keep him out the rest of this season and potentially all of next year, too. He is a free agent in 2026, so even if the Colts re-sign him, he won't be able to play right away. Richardson's final year of his rookie deal is next year.
But the Indianapolis Colts face a four-game stretch that will determine their playoff fate this season. Signing Philip Rivers makes sense, but the hope is that he stands on the sidelines and helps to make sure the Indianapolis Colts get good play out of Riley Leonard.