Philip Rivers’ Success Is Inspiring

Rivers coming back after five years at age 44 is unprecedented. The Colts, however, felt that they needed someone who could run the offense efficiently with Jones out. They were hoping that Rivers, who played his final season in Indianapolis, could bring familiarity to the offense.

The Colts were 8-5 and needed to win some games down the stretch to make a playoff push. It was not going to be an easy task for Rivers. His first game was on the road against the Seattle Seahawawks an its vaunted defense.

The Seahawks are top three in a lot of major categories. This includes being second in points allowed per game, first in yards per pass attempt allowed, and second in pass rush win rate.

These are all the ingredients you don’t want to see as a Colts fan. A stifling pass defense with a ferocious rush against a 44-year-old quarterback that was never known for his mobility anyway. We were all curious to see how Rivers would fare in his first time in action after five years.

Considering all the factors, Rivers wasn’t bad at all! He was 18-27 for 120 yards with one touchdown pass and one interception. By no means did he light it up, but he was more than adequate as a passer, and his experience allowed him to avoid being pressured. He was sacked only once all game.

Rivers’ second performance was what caught me off guard. On Monday Night football against the red-hot San Franscisoco 49ers, he threw for 277 yards on 23-35 passing for two touchdowns and an interception.

The Colts ended up losing 27-48, but Rivers did his part. They did not lose that game because of his play. The defense let the team down.

It was just really cool to see Grandpa Rivers step back into the field and look like he never left. A real Christmas miracle.

Is There a QB Problem?

Rivers playing well was really cool to see, but it also sparked a few questions. If a 44-year-old out-of-shape retiree can come back after five years and play good football, what does it say about other struggling quarterbacks?

Better yet, is there a flaw in how teams develop these quarterbacks? The biggest takeaway I had when watching Rivers was his activity pre-snap. He knew what the defense was running before the play and put his teammates in a good position.

The art of the pre-snap adjustments has been lost in the last couple of years. Nowadays, players rely more on their athleticism and improvisation. That doesn’t mean I’m saying they’re not as mentally sharp in this era, but the emphasis on the game between the ears seems to have gone down.

Guys like Drake Maye and Josh Allen take a lot of sacks for offenses that are prolific. I feel like there should be a bigger emphasis on perfecting the setup pre-snap so they don’t have to take as many hits.

Maybe I am wrong, and maybe the offensive lines could be problematic, but if they were that bad, the offense wouldn’t be as good. The Buffalo Bills and New England Patriots both have great offenses with quarterbacks that take a lot of sacks, and normally, those things don’t correlate. How can it happen, though, if the sacks are more on the QB rather than the line itself?

The point I’m making is that there should be more of an emphasis on getting the offense in a better position pre-snap so the ball is out on time more often. We would love to see guys like Maye and Allen be in the league for a long time.

It’s no coincidence that Peyton Manning, Tom Brady, Ben Roethlisberger, Drew Brees, and Rivers played 15+ years. They know how to make their lives easier at the line of scrimmage. I just don’t see much of that from the younger players.

End Of Philip Rivers Impact Rant

Rivers’ impact goes beyond just football. His return can and should inspire everyone in their everyday life. He laid it out perfectly in his postgame presser after the game against Seattle.

Rivers conveyed that he had doubts when he decided to return. He, however, never let it dictate his decisions. He said it’s ok to do things scared and to live with doubt.

That can be applied anywhere in life. It’s going to be scary, and doubt will be real, but at the end of the day, it’s the actions that matter.

Someone close to me portrayed that message to me, and when I heard Rivers portray the same message, it was moving.