INDIANAPOLIS, IND.- In the upcoming 2020 NFL season Philip Rivers will be playing for just his second team after 16 years in the league. The superstar quarterback just signed a one-year contract with the Indianapolis Colts worth a guaranteed $25-million, which includes a $12-milllion signing bonus and a $13-million salary.

He leaves the San Diego/Los Angeles Chargers after 16 seasons and the end of a four-year $83-million contract. He exits California ranked sixth on the NFL’s all-time passing list with 59, 271 yards and a league’s tenth best all-time passing efficiency of 95.1.
“Our time was done there,” said Rivers in a recent teleconference with a pool of reporters from Indianapolis. “I was still excited about playing and hoping to get another opportunity to continue my career, and I’m certainly thankful that’s going to be with the Colts.”

At age 38, Rivers knows his lifespan in the NFL is coming to an end.

In a 2016 interview with the Madison Record, Rivers stated, “Yes, I plan on playing through my contract and then see what happens. I’m going to play until I can’t.”

Four years ago, the Decatur native, who prepped at Athens High, already spoke of retirement with his wife, Tiffany, and their eight children. He recently hinted at an upcoming retirement, but he already had the conversation with the Madison Record four years ago.

“I’m very thankful for the financial side of my career, but I know it will end soon and when it does I hope to coach in high school,” said Rivers. “There’s part of college and NFL football that are great, but I think in high school football the impact you can have on those 15-16-year old boys and still have the presentation strategy involved and trying to win is the best of everything.”

Rivers has deep desires to coach football on a high school level as his father, Steve Rivers, did for 26-years and posted a record of 188-95.   The elder Rivers coached at Decatur High from 1981-1995 and at Athens High 1996-1999.

The younger Rivers was an All-State quarterback for his father at Athens before he had a spectacular, record setting four years at North Carolina State, which led to his being a first-round NFL Draft choice in 2004.

“I want to come in there, earn my teammates trust and respect,” said Rivers. “You’ve got to start and build that with your new teammates, so it’s not so much prove it as it is I want to prove it, too.”

The Colts were 7-9 in 2019 and lost their starting quarterback, Andrew Luck, who shocked the league by retiring in the pre-season.

Rivers looks forward to the challenge of a new team and team offensive schemes. He added, “I think you have a heck of a football team just from seeing them compete each year. I’m just excited to be a part of it, be a part of those guys and try to help us get to the top.”

Rivers spoke of his upcoming season with the Colts, but he kept hinting to his post-playing days and desire to coach.

“I do want to coach my son, my oldest son who is 12. That’s important to me to coach him in high school,” said Rivers, who has vivid memories of his years as a small boy shadowing his father and learning everything he could about the sport that would be his career and would lead him to follow in his father’s footsteps of coaching his son.