Rivers initially revealed his decision to the San Diego Union-Tribune late Tuesday night and told the newspaper that he intends to stick with his plan to coach high school football. "I'm sure there's a lot of defensive coordinators right now around the league breathing a sigh of relief, with all respect to what Phil has been able to do." "I put him in the same category as all those elite quarterbacks - extremely smart," McDermott said. "īills coach Sean McDermott said Wednesday that Rivers was "one of the best that I've ever been around" at the quarterback position and described him as a "high-character man and a guy with great core values." The Colts, who added Rivers to provide stability at quarterback after Andrew Luck's surprising retirement before the 2019 season, also thanked Rivers on Twitter.Ĭolts coach Frank Reich said earlier this month that he hoped Rivers would return for the 2021 season and that he thought "Philip still has a lot of good football. Indianapolis was eliminated this month with a 27-24 loss to the Buffalo Bills. Rivers passed for 4,169 yards and 24 TDs this past season, leading the Colts to an 11-5 record and a wild-card berth in the AFC playoffs. The Chargers congratulated Rivers on his retirement, tweeting "there will never be another." Owner Dean Spanos called him the "heart and soul of the organization" for many years. Thank you God for allowing me to live out my childhood dream of playing quarterback in the NFL."īetween his trademark throwing style and his penchant for trash-talking without cussing, Rivers carved out his own niche in the NFL and retires as the Chargers' franchise record-holder in every major passing category. Sebastian's Feast day, the day I played in the AFC championship without an ACL, and now the day that after 17 seasons, I'm announcing my retirement from the National Football League. "Every year, January 20th is a special and emotional day," Rivers said. The announcement also came exactly 13 years to the day after Rivers played with a torn ACL in the Chargers' loss to the New England Patriots in the AFC Championship Game. Sebastian - often referred to as the patron saint for athletes. 20, which is the Roman Catholic Church's feast day for St. Rivers said in his statement that he wanted to announce his retirement on Jan.
The eight-time Pro Bowler also is fifth in league history with 421 touchdown passes - again behind only Brady, Brees, Manning and Favre. He ranks fifth in NFL history with 63,440 passing yards, behind only Drew Brees, Tom Brady, Peyton Manning and Brett Favre. While Rivers, 39, never played in a Super Bowl, it was one of the few glaring omissions on an otherwise remarkable resume. Rivers, who spent this past season with the Indianapolis Colts after 16 years with the Los Angeles Chargers, said in a statement Wednesday that playing quarterback in the NFL was his "childhood dream." Philip Rivers is retiring from football, ending his 17-year career as one of the most prolific quarterbacks in NFL history. NFL, Indianapolis Colts, Los Angeles Chargers
Philip Rivers retires from NFL, ending 17-year career spent with Los Angeles Chargers and Indianapolis Colts
You have reached a degraded version of because you're using an unsupported version of Internet Explorer.įor a complete experience, please upgrade or use a supported browser