Philip Rivers Inspires, No Matter the Outcome

Philip Rivers Inspires, No Matter the Outcome

“Coach Wasn’t Scared”

It was clear that Rivers was more than ready to take the ball for the Colts on Sunday. Sure, it probably was difficult to say yes to the challenge of coming back after five years off. He even said that he wasn’t joining the Colts to “be the savior“. But Rivers has never been one to back down from a challenge. Rivers stated in a press conference, “I ain’t never run away from anybody anyway.” Now that was a reference to his current weight, and being able to get away from defenders physically. However, it can be tied back to his leadership ability and his refusal to let anything keep him down. That alone is a defining quality of how Philip Rivers inspires the people around him.

Emotional Return

Rivers knew his emotions were going to be running high coming into Seattle. How could they not be? Rivers was the main topic of discussion all of last week around the sports world. However, he never let his emotions get the best of him while on the field. Now, some emotion could be seen after throwing his first touchdown in 5 years. But that’s just the kind of guy Rivers is. A fierce competitor who isn’t afraid to trash talk and let others know that even at 44, he can still spin it.

Perhaps the biggest show of emotion from Rivers was in the postgame interview. Rivers, with tears in his eyes, explains how he hopes the decision he made to come back inspires young kids that they can do anything they put their mind to, no matter what’s a stake. He goes on to say that, “Obviously, this doesn’t come up every day. But I think maybe it will inspire or teach not to be run or be scared of what may or may not happen. Hopefully, certainly I think of my sons and those ballplayers that I’m in charge of at the school, that they’ll say ‘Crap, coach wasn’t scared.’”

Leadership 101

It’s not hard to see how Philip Rivers inspires the people around him. The Colts were playing an inspired brand of football on Sunday. Through the past few seasons, it’s evident that the Colts seem to give up when situations like these arise. However, Sunday’s game felt different. Yes, the Colts lost, but they never quit. It can easily be tied to the veteran leadership of Rivers being back in the locker room.

Rivers was adamant about how grateful he was to be a teammate again. He knew it was going to be tough going into Seattle to try to get a win, but everyone knew Rivers was going to give it his best shot. The leadership and presence of Rivers can ultimately be tied to what inspired the Colts’ play on Sunday. Even on drives that didn’t pan out well for Indy, Rivers can be seen on the sideline gathering the offense. Almost as if he is saying that there is no need to panic and that everything is going to be just fine.

Inspiration Moving Forward

On Monday, Rivers was named the starter for the Monday Night game against the 49ers. Yet another matchup that will be tough for Rivers and the Colts. However, Rivers is showing that age is nothing but a number. If he can keep going out and having an impact on the team, no matter the outcome, it can help this locker room going into the future.

There is a good balance of younger and older guys on the Colts roster; many of them really don’t know what winning really feels like. Insert Rivers there. Even though his time with the Colts will be short, his impact will be felt for seasons to come. A good example is seeing Anthony Richardson shadowing Rivers during practice. Although right now it’s mainly mental reps, any impact Rivers has on Richardson will only help the young quarterback for years to come.

The story of Rivers will be one for the NFL history books. Nobody will be able to say that Rivers never gave the game of football his all. Coming off coaching his son’s high school team, playing the number 2-ranked defense in the league, and looking capable of still being able to run an NFL offense is remarkable. Whatever the outcome of this era of Rivers in Indy, he has inspired the minds of many people around the game and around the country.