General manager Chris Ballard and the Indianapolis Colts obviously did not trust Riley Leonard to start any games after Daniel Jones was injured. Instead, the team asked Philip Rivers to come out of retirement after five years, had him practice for three days, and made him the starter.
Rivers might have known head coach Shane Steichen's scheme extremely well. It likely would have been close to the same that Rivers ran with the Los Angeles Chargers when Steichen was a coach there. Rivers also coached the scheme in high school football in Alabama.
But knowing how to run the system and then having enough recent in-game play to execute it at the NFL level is a completely different issue, especially for a 44-year-old quarterback with diminished physical skills.
Riley Leonard's first half brilliance in Week 18 should lead to the Colts firing Chris Ballard
In the first half against the Houston Texans' starting defense, Riley Leonard made one critical mistake (a fumble near his own goal line) but was otherwise brilliant. He completed eight of 13 passes for 133 yards and two touchdowns.
His quarterback rating was 136.6. He also ran once for 11 yards. He tested the Texans' defense deep in a way Rivers literally was physically incapable of doing had he played.
But Ballard and Steichen's long-term relationship with Rivers clearly affected their thinking, and they committed to starting the once-retired quarterback. Leonard made it seem as if the Colts' offense would have been more versatile and explosive had the rookie been the starter.
To be clear, Ballard and Steichen let their friendship with Philip Rivers to get in the way of the football decisions they needed to make for the betterment of the team.
One important aspect is that what Leonard did in the first half (he also was brilliant on the opening drive of the first half, though Houston started resting some starters) was against the statistically best defense in the league. Rivers would have likely led a more limited attack. With Leonard, Steichen had the freedom to air the ball out with long passes and let the quarterback use his legs.
When Daniel Jones was injured, Chris Ballard and Shane Steichen almost immediately gave Philip Rivers a call. None of the blame for what happened over the next three games should fall on Rivers. He couldn't physically lead a potent attack. Riley Leonard proved in Week 18 that he could.
But instead of relying on what they saw Leonard do in practice and for much of Week 14 after Jones was injured, Ballard and Steichen decided their longtime friendship with Rivers was more important. Would Leonard have gotten a victory in one of the three games in which Rivers was the starter? Based on Week 18, there is no evidence that he wouldn't have.
Did Leonard make a couple of mistakes that were costly? Sure. A fourth quarter interception was bad, though Leonard had his arm hit. With more real-game pay, chances of making future mistakes might be lessened because of experience.
Leonard finished 21 of 34 for 270 yards, two touchdowns, an interception, and a good quarterback rating of 94.0 He also ran three times for 21 yards and a touchdown.
Indianapolis Colts general manager Chris Ballard thought enough to draft Riley Leonard in the sixth round of the 2025 draft, but not enough to work with Shane Steichen to start him after Jones was hurt. That kind of decision-making needs to go. So does Ballard.