QB Philip Rivers retires after 17 seasons with Colts, Chargers originally appeared on NBC Sports Washington
Former Indianapolis Colts and San Diego/Los Angeles Chargers quarterback Philip Rivers has decided to retire from the NFL and start a new career as a high school football coach in Alabama, the likely first-ballot Hall of Famer told the San Diego Union-Tribune on Tuesday.
“Every year, January 20th is a special and emotional day,” Rivers said in a statement obtained by ESPN. “It is St. 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. Thank you God for allowing me to live out my childhood dream of playing quarterback in the NFL.”
Rivers, 39, finished his career with the fifth-most passing yards (63,440) and touchdowns (421) in NFL history. He started 240 consecutive games to close out his career, a run surpassed only by Hall of Fame quarterback Brett Favre (297). The former No. 4 overall pick reached the playoffs seven times but never managed to make it to a Super Bowl.
His career began with some controversy after Eli Manning demanded to be traded by the San Diego Chargers when they drafted him with the first pick in 2004. That prompted the Chargers to work out a trade with the New York Giants, who shipped Rivers and three picks to San Diego in exchange for Manning. While Manning went on to win two Super Bowls in New York, Rivers finished with 6,417 more passing yards, 55 more touchdowns and 35 fewer interceptions in six more games.
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After the Colts were bounced from the playoffs with a loss to the Buffalo Bills in the AFC Wild Card round, Rivers contemplated returning for an 18th season. He was a free agent thanks to his one-year deal with Indianapolis expiring but opted to hang up the cleats rather than test the open market.
“I can sit here and say, ‘I can still throw it. I love to play,’” Rivers said to the San Diego Union-Tribune. “But that’s always going to be there. I’m excited to go coach high school football.”
Rivers now joins Manning as the second of three likely Hall of Fame quarterbacks from the 2004 NFL Draft class to call it a career. The last man standing is Ben Roethlisberger, selected 11th overall that year by the Pittsburgh Steelers.
