Philip Rivers retiring after 17 seasons, making interesting Hall of Fame case

Philip Rivers has been a top-tier quarterback for nearly two decades but, after a one-year stint with the Colts, he’s hanging it up for his NFL career. Will the Hall of Fame be next?

After entering the league as the No. 4 pick in the 2004 NFL Draft, Philip Rivers spent two years on the sidelines for the Chargers before taking over as the starter. And thus began a 17-year career that, after his lone season with the Colts in 2020, is coming to an end. Rivers told Kevin Acee of The San Diego Union-Tribune on Wednesday that he’s retiring.

Spending 16 seasons in San Diego/Los Angeles and one in Indianapolis, Rivers calls it a career on the heels of the Colts losing to the Buffalo Bills in the Wild Card Round of the 2021 NFL Playoffs. Rivers was brought into Indianapolis to try and help the team get over the hump and compete for a Super Bowl but, as Rivers has throughout his career, he fell short.

Rivers will reportedly leave the ranks of NFL quarterbacks to coach prep football in Alabama, which is a lifelong dream according to Acee. Given that Rivers has an extensive immediate family with his wife and kids, it’s not hard to reason why he would want to turn his attention to the high school football world.

Philip Rivers may not have won a Super Bowl but there’s no denying his career accomplishments.

Missing out on the Super Bowl with the Colts this season is, unfortunately, a defining trait for Rivers and his career. The closest he came was the 2008 AFC Championship Game, which resulted in a 21-12 loss to the New England Patriots. So, without a ring, one has to wonder if he’s bound for the Pro Football Hall of Fame now.

It’s hard to argue with his accomplishments and how his ability helped usher in the league’s passing boom. Rivers made eight Pro Bowls in his career and finishes his time in the NFL ranking fifth in career passing yards (63,440) and fifth in career passing touchdowns (421).

Furthermore, even without a Super Bowl ring on his ledger, Rivers’ team finished with a 134-106 record when he was the starter, speaking to the level he was able to raise his teams to. That was never more evident than in 2018 when the Chargers went 12-4 despite a roster that was largely in shambles around the veteran quarterback.

However, without an All-Pro selection or a Super Bowl, Rivers is an unbelievably intriguing candidate for the Hall of Fame. After all, how much can he be faulted for playing at the same time as the likes of Drew Brees, Peyton Manning, Ben Roethlisberger, Aaron Rodgers and a number of other all-time greats — especially when he still produced incredibly over that span?

According to Pro Football Reference’s HOF Monitor, Rivers has a rating of 97.64 while the average quarterback in the Hall of Fame is 101.39. Thus, it’ll be interesting to see if the North Carolina State product eventually makes it in. Regardless, it’s sad to see a veteran of his caliber go but Rivers undoubtedly has earned some time off, goshdarnit.