Kevin Acee on Twitter: "“It’s just time.” Philip Rivers retiring from NFL after 17 seasons. https://t.co/Ht6xSIska9" / Twitter
Rivers was the double edged sword.... he'd look the the GOAT one minute, then WTF the next.... but I still think he was better than Eli I was rooting for the Colts this post season, as I expected this.
Stats padder. The Frank Gore of ball throwers. The worst sort of QB to be stuck with. Never bad enough to cut, never clutch enough to win anything.
I liked Philip Rivers and I think he was pretty good, but the only time he had sustained success was when the entire team was stacked. As the roster deteriorated, so did their W/L, although he always played pretty good. In the long run, I think he won't have a lasting impression upon the NFL.
He was never great, but he was way better than plenty of quarterbacks who won Super Bowls, including the revered Eli and Saint Nick from down the Turnpike. Sometimes things align perfectly for people, and sometimes they don't, and he was in the latter category.
If you look at the NFL over time the only time any QB has sustained success is when the entire team is stacked. It's easy to be an All-Pro caliber QB and still go 7-9 4 out of 5 years running as Drew Brees did. It's also easy to be a solid QB, like Chad Pennington, and be the only guy to beat out Tom Brady for a division title and do it twice over a decade with two different teams because both teams were stacked for a run by Bill Parcells. It ain't all about the QB although you need to have a good one to do much damage in the post season.
He's a HOFer. Not first ballot, but a HOFer. He obviously isn't in the Peyton, Montana, or Brady wing of the HOF, but he absolutely deserves to be in it. Lack of hardware is the only thing that you can argue against him
I've always had respect for him since he played in the playoffs with a torn up knee, and was a gamer. If the stupid D-back would've knocked down that pass instead of "intercepting" it, they wouldve been in the SB that year...
He had 4 losing seasons in 16 years with SD. It seemed to me that team the last decade was the tale of 2 seasons. They'd either dig themselves a huge hole to start the season then come on strong and challenge for a playoff spot, mainly falling just short or they'd start out great and fade down the stretch. During that stretch they had double digit wins once in those last 10 seasons. That team was only stacked early on in his career.
Did he ever really have a good coach in San Diego? Schottenheimer one of the all time biggest choke artists, Norv Turner as well. Mike McCoy sucked and Lynn sucked. That team could've won a title with a decent coach
Surprised by some of the responses disliking Rivers. Always loved watching him play. Dude loved the game like no other. He should've at least been playing in the AFC Championship game in 2018 if he had a defensive coach with a fucking clue. Rush 3 or 4 and drop 8 into deep cover 4 zones against the best underneath passer of all time. Brilliant. As soon as he blew out his knee in that game against the Pats it's almost like you pretty much knew that was as close as he was going to get. Same thing with the patented Schottenheimer choke job in 2006 with the far better team.
Some would probably argue, but I think Stafford is the other QB that fills this bill. I agree with JV though, Rivers had a passion for the game and gave it all. Been a fan of his since the NC State days.
I thought the 2009 team could beat the Colts in the AFC Championship game in Indy until we threw a wrench into that idea.
