Teams Expecting Philip Rivers To Sign With Colts?
The Colts have been the team most closely connected to Philip Rivers this offseason. While others are linked to the eight-time Pro Bowler, the mutual interest between the Colts and Rivers has affected teams’ perception of this particular market.
Many with rival teams are expecting Rivers to sign with the Colts, according to Albert Breer of SI.com. Jim Irsay said recently all options were on the table for his team, which turned to Jacoby Brissett after Andrew Luck‘s retirement.
The Buccaneers and Redskins are also interested, likely the former more so than the latter, and a league source told CBS Sports’ Jason La Canfora he expects Bruce Arians to persuade Rivers to sign with Tampa Bay. The 16-year veteran moved his family to north Florida this offseason.
While the Bucs boast the superior wide receiver tandem, the Colts have the better offensive line. And Rivers’ connections to Frank Reich and OC Nick Sirianni, both ex-Chargers assistants, will almost certainly impact the chase for the true free agent market’s second-highest-profile quarterback. Rivers remains close with both Colts staffers.
Rivers is targeting a two-year window to extend his career and wants to do so with a team in position to contend. Retirement, however, is not off the table. ESPN has entered the Rivers sweepstakes, showing interest in the 38-year-old quarterback as an analyst. Though, the network’s plans involve several moving parts.
ESPN Interested In Philip Rivers
With Tony Romo signing a monster extension to stay at CBS, ESPN is moving to other options for its latest attempt to change its Monday Night Football broadcast crew. This attempt may interfere with teams’ free agency plans.
In addition to attempting to lure Peyton Manning to the booth again, ESPN is interested in Philip Rivers, according to Andrew Marchand of the New York Post.
It’s unclear if Rivers is a backup plan to Manning, whom networks have long coveted as an analyst. But Rivers, 38, has generated interest as a player — namely from the Colts and Buccaneers — and has said he would like to play at least two more years. However, Rivers is also reportedly still considering retirement. This would be an interesting landing spot for the 16-year veteran.
ESPN’s ideal scenario is a Manning-Al Michaels booth, per Marchand. After Romo signed for more than $18MM per year at CBS — doubling any previous NFL announcer’s salary — that would be an expensive proposition. Michaels remains under contract with NBC, where he’s been since 2006. Manning has turned the network down previously and has opted not to make a full-fledged foray into broadcasting since his March 2016 retirement. ESPN currently uses a Joe Tessitore-Booger McFarland team but is plotting a potential Michaels trade — an unusual transaction that could make an impact on the actual NFL offseason — to upgrade its booth.
Networks have coveted active players in recent years, and both Jason Witten and Jay Cutler retired to accept announcing positions. However, both returned to the field, Cutler doing so that same year after Ryan Tannehill‘s injury. Greg Olsen recently turned down a Fox offer to sign with the Seahawks.
Mutual interest is believed to exist between the Colts and Rivers, and the Bucs may have the longtime Charger passer ahead of Jameis Winston on their offseason wish list. The Redskins have also expressed interest. So, this has become quite the complicated offseason for Rivers, whose mic’d-up sessions have been known to feature entertaining dialogue.
Mutual Interest Between Rivers, Colts?
The Colts have not entered free agency in the market for a veteran starting quarterback since the mid-1990s, but signs continue to point toward the franchise exploring a deal with one of this year’s biggest available names.
After a report surfaced indicating the Colts are interested in Philip Rivers, the quarterback may share that interest in signing up to play in Indianapolis. Rivers seemingly has interest in joining the Colts, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com notes (video link). However, other teams may interfere with this potential partnership.
Rivers worked with both Frank Reich and Nick Sirianni with the Chargers, and early indications make the Colts a frontrunner for the 38-year-old quarterback’s services. They are doing their homework on the eight-time Pro Bowler. But the Buccaneers are believed to have interest as well and may even prefer Rivers to Jameis Winston. And as strange as it sounds, given their depth chart and salary commitments at quarterback, the Redskins may join the Bucs and Colts as Rivers suitors.
The Colts and Buccaneers each possess immense cap space, with Indianapolis holding $86MM and Tampa Bay at $79MM. However, the Bucs have a far more crowded group of free agents — including Winston, Shaquil Barrett, Jason Pierre-Paul and Ndamukong Suh — than the Colts. Indianapolis also may be the better bet to be a 2020 playoff contender, given its 2018 divisional-round advancement and wealth of cap space, than a Bucs franchise that has not qualified for the postseason since 2007. The Bucs, though, boast one of the league’s best receiver tandems in Mike Evans and Chris Godwin.
Rivers made it clear he wants to sign with a potential contender and is eyeing a two-year window to extend his career outside of southern California. A market is taking shape.
Redskins Interested in Philip Rivers?
There’s been a lot of buzz about Philip Rivers and the Colts recently, and there have also been reports that the Buccaneers are interested in the impending free agent passer. While most of the talk surrounding where Rivers plays next has focused on those two teams, there’s at least one wild card option in the mix.
The Redskins are expected to “make a bid” for Rivers, sources at the combine told Tony Pauline of ProFootballNetwork.com. There has been some talk that Washington could be looking to upgrade at quarterback despite the presence of Dwayne Haskins, and we recently heard that they would host Joe Burrow and Tua Tagovailoa on pre-draft visits. The Redskins hold the second overall pick in April’s draft. This latest report indicates they’re also interested in bringing in a veteran, although Pauline cautions there would be some financial hurdles.
The sources conceded that it would be tough for the Redskins to sign Rivers, since it “will likely take a massive contract.” It was unclear what Rivers’ market was going to look like, but it sounds like he’s going to be in high-demand. The 38-year-old had a down year this past season that was marred by turnovers, but in 2018 he was one of the best quarterbacks in the league and made the Pro Bowl. He’s averaged at least 7.8 yards per attempt in three straight seasons.
Rivers has been linked to the Colts in part because of his connections to head coach Frank Reich and offensive coordinator Nick Sirianni, but he also has some connections to Washington’s new staff. New Redskins head coach Ron Rivera was an assistant with the Chargers for four years during Rivers’ time there, which could help explain this report. Although this seems like a bit of a long-shot Rivera has consistently insisted that nothing will be handed to Haskins, and it will be very interesting to see what if anything they do at quarterback this offseason.
Buccaneers Determining QB Path, Preparing To Tag Shaquil Barrett
The prospect of teams using both franchise and transition tags remains in play, though there is a better-than-average chance of the owners’ CBA proposal being ratified and preventing such a path. This would impact the Buccaneers considerably.
Having said for months they plan to keep Shaquil Barrett, the Bucs are preparing to use their franchise tag on the 2019 breakout pass rusher, Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports notes. Bruce Arians pointed to this path, unless an extension can be agreed upon, Greg Auman of The Athletic writes (subscription required).
Barrett registered a Bucs-record (by a considerable margin) 19.5 sacks last season, topping his total from four Broncos campaigns. Nevertheless, the 27-year-old sack artist — who is open to giving the Bucs a discount, based on Florida’s lack of a state income tax — will not hit the market. This complicates Jameis Winston‘s status, as he appears behind Barrett on the Bucs’ priority list.
Tampa Bay remains uncertain about its future at quarterback, but the team may well view Philip Rivers as an upgrade on the interception-prone passer. The Bucs are interested in the 16-year Charger/new Florida resident, with La Canfora adding execs around the league believe the team will get aggressive on Winston if a clear sense emerges that Rivers will not sign there. The Colts have surfaced as key players for Rivers, who worked with Frank Reich and Indianapolis OC Nick Sirianni with the Chargers. But Rivers would be an interesting fit for Arians’ deep-passing attack in Tampa as well.
If teams are permitted to use two tags (and not have one of them vacated by a new CBA passing), Winston appears a strong candidate to receive the transition tag. That price will come in north of $25MM, which is at least $2MM lower than the franchise tag value for QBs.
It could also be down to Rivers or Winston for the Bucs, whom Auman tabs as unlikely to draft a quarterback this year. Tampa Bay holds the No. 14 overall pick.
Colts Did Not Meet With Tom Brady’s Camp?
One of the biggest rumors that dropped yesterday was that the Colts (along with the Chargers and Raiders) had met with Tom Brady‘s camp at the scouting combine. Because of another rumor that surfaced a few hours earlier suggesting that Brady is gearing up to leave New England, the Colts-Brady connection garnered plenty of buzz.
However, a league source told Stephen Holder of The Athletic that the Indianapolis portion of that report was “made up.” Per Holder, that does not necessarily mean that the Colts are not interested in the Patriots legend, but they have not yet spoken to his reps. Speculatively, given that Indy is so flush with cap space, it makes sense that all agents would want to publicly connect the Colts to their clients as much as possible.
Holder’s source did say that the Colts are vetting another presumptive Hall of Fame passer, Philip Rivers. We heard several days ago that Indianapolis is interested in the longtime Charger, and that appears to be true. As Holder observes, that vetting can take a number of forms, including gathering intel on Rivers from around the league. The Colts are also said to have an eye on Titans QB Marcus Mariota, though Holder’s report did not specifically mention him.
Obviously, if the Colts were to sign someone like Mariota, there would be an open competition for the starting job between him and incumbent Jacoby Brissett. If they signed a player like Brady or Rivers, Brissett would either become a highly-compensated backup or trade bait.
In any event, Holder confirms that all options are on the table when it comes to the Colts’ quarterback decision. They could continue to roll with Brissett, who was performing well in 2019 before being sidetracked by an injury, they could sign a vet, or they could draft a collegiate signal-caller.
Colts Interested In Philip Rivers
Rumored as a Colts fit for multiple reasons, Philip Rivers does appear to be on Indianapolis’ radar. The team has interest in the eight-time Pro Bowl quarterback, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (video link).
Rivers remains close to ex-Chargers offensive coordinator Frank Reich and former Bolts quarterbacks coach Nick Sirianni. Those two now serve as the Colts’ HC-OC tandem. Many around the league expect Rivers to end up with the Colts, Rapoport adds.
GM Chris Ballard said at the 2019 season’s conclusion Jacoby Brissett‘s future as the team’s starter is uncertain. Jim Irsay added that all options are on the table for the team, which lost franchise centerpiece Andrew Luck to a surprising retirement last August. The Colts signed Brissett to a two-year, $30MM extension. He is on Indianapolis’ books at $21MM and would cost the Colts $12.5MM in dead money to release him.
The Chargers announced they will not re-sign Rivers, who is coming off his worst season in at least seven years. The 38-year-old quarterback has said he wants to return for a 17th season, adding that he’s set a two-year window and would not make sense on a rebuilding team. While the Colts struggled last season, they voyaged to the AFC’s divisional round in 2018 with Luck.
Rivers sits sixth on the NFL’s all-time passing yards and touchdowns lists and finished seventh in QBR in 2018, when the Chargers went 12-4. For the most part, he played the past three seasons without a home-field advantage. The Colts also have a far superior offensive line compared to the Bolts, and it’s looking like free agent left tackle Anthony Castonzo is headed back to Indianapolis. The Colts could use help at wide receiver, but this situation would have some selling points for Rivers. Indianapolis’ $86MM-plus in cap space sits second in the league.
Extra Points: Winston, Rivers, Colts, Rams
For what it’s worth, Jameis Winston underwent LASIK surgery to repair his vision, reports Rick Stroud of TampaBay.com. The quarterback was previously nearsighted, and it was “always a lingering question” if that was impacting Winston’s performance. Stroud cautions that it’s uncertain whether this surgery was requested by the Buccaneers.
“Jameis did not want to count out any options that he had that could possibly help him with the game he loves so much,” said Denise White, Winston’s spokesperson. “He doesn’t want to miss out on any opportunity that presents itself. This is the game he loves and he wants to be the best at it and if there are any options that can improve his game he is willing to do it.”
While Winston set career-highs in passing yards (5,109) and touchdowns (33) in 2019, he also set a career-high (and led the NFL) with 30 interceptions. The former top-overall pick is set to hit free agency this offseason.
Let’s check out some more notes from around the NFL…
- The Chargers announced earlier this week that they wouldn’t be bringing back franchise quarterback Philip Rivers. After the signal-caller spent 16 years with the organization, GM Tom Telesco made it clear that he wanted the breakup to be as clean as possible. “Once we saw the way this was heading, it was in the forefront of my mind,” Telesco told SI’s Albert Breer. “I mean, he’s an icon for the organization and he’s done so much here. I wanted to make sure everything was done as respectfully and classy as possible. This can be a very difficult business for all of us to be in—head coaches, GMs, players. That was the thought in my mind.” The 38-year-old Rivers has already insinuated that he won’t be retiring.
- Speaking of Rivers, Jim Ayello of the Indianapolis Star suggests that the veteran could be a target for the Colts. For such a signing to take place, the writer opines that the front office would have to believe that Rivers is an upgrade over incumbent Jacoby Brissett. On the flip side, Ayello believes the signing wouldn’t clash with the sentiment that Indy needs to draft a young QB, as the player could realistically sit behind Rivers for the next two seasons.
- The Rams announced today that they’ve hired Tory Woodbury as an assistant special teams coach (via ESPN’s Lindsey Thiry on Twitter). Woodbury has been with the organization for the past three seasons, including the last two in their scouting department.
Poll: Who Is The Best Unrestricted Free Agent QB This Offseason?
As teams gear up for an offseason of roster maneuvering, teams are beginning to the arduous process of lining up their salary caps to retain key players on expiring contracts, sign free agents, and their draft picks. Teams are forced to make especially difficult salary-cap decisions when they have a chance at an elite player through free agency.
While many of the top players currently set for free agency will surely sign an extension with their current team or receive either the franchise or transition tag, it is always a fun exercise to examine who is currently the best player set to be available through unrestricted free agency.
It’s no secret that this year’s offseason will be dominated by quarterback storylines. Philip Rivers, Jameis Winston, and Teddy Bridgewater are all set to be unrestricted free agents and had success as starters last season. Yet, none of them have the pedigree of future Hall of Famers Drew Brees and Tom Brady, the 
combination of youth and sustained success like Dak Prescott, or match the recent performance of Ryan Tannehill.
Brady has obviously asserted himself as one of the greatest quarterbacks of all time over his Patriots career, but he will be 43 before the start of next season and looked abnormally average at the close of this season. New England finished the season with back-to-back losses to finish out the regular season (against the 5-11 Dolphins) and in the first round of the playoffs (at home against the Titans).
Brady played a role in both losses, completing just 36 of his 66 attempts (good for a 54.5% completion percentage) for 430 yards, two touchdowns, and two interceptions. At the same time, Brady amassed over 4,000 passing yards for the third consecutive season and produced his best touchdown-to-interception ratio (24 to 8) since 2017.
Brees is in a similar boat. He’ll be 41 next season, but just led the league in completion percentage for the third consecutive season and posted the best touchdown-to-interception ratio of his career. With that said, the Saints did not look much different in the 5 games Brees missed early in the season with backup Teddy Bridgewater in his place.
Prescott has been surrounded by the hoopla of quarterbacking America’s Team, but the Cowboys signal-caller has taken consistent strides under the bright lights. At just 26 last season, Prescott fell just 98 yards shy of reaching the 5000-yard mark. He set a career-high with 30 touchdown throws and even while throwing a career-high 596 attempts, was sacked a career-low 23 times.
Of course, unlike Brees and Brady, Prescott has yet to reach the historic status they both already have. In fact, Prescott has yet to play in a conference championship game. Furthermore, his career year this season came while Dallas struggled to an 8-8 record in a wide-open NFC East. Does he deserve credit for performing despite a difficult surrounding, or was he responsible for the team’s struggles?
Finally, one of the most interesting stories of the season surrounded the quarterback position in Tennessee. Many around the league scoffed when the Titans benched Marcus Mariota for Ryan Tannehill. It seemed like they were just replacing one disappointing quarterback with another. However, the once highly regarded prospect led the Titans to a 7-3 surge to close the regular season, upset the Patriots in the first round of the playoffs, and almost upset the eventual Super Bowl champion Chiefs.
Tannehill threw for 2742 yards in just 10 regular season starts, throwing 22 touchdowns and just 6 interceptions. He led the league in yards per attempt (9.6) and quarterback rating (117.5) while helping young wideout A.J. Brown emerge as one of the best receivers in football. However, it’s fair to wonder how much of Tannehill’s success was a side-effect of a fantastic run game (led by Derrick Henry) and his receivers (like Brown). With the shortest resume of the group, Tannehill surely represents the largest risk but may have one of the highest rewards.
With all that said, what do you think? Who is the best unrestricted free agent quarterback this offseason? Submit your answer in the poll below and voice in your opinion in the comments.
Philip Rivers Not Planning To Retire
One of the highest-profile quarterbacks to ever hit the free agent market will indeed survey his options. The Chargers and Philip Rivers are going their separate ways, and Rivers wants to continue his career. The 38-year-old passer is not considering retirement. However, he now has a retirement window in mind.
“I can say for certain that if I’m playing, it’s a two-year maximum,” Rivers said, via Sam Farmer of the Los Angeles Times. “Whoever the suitors are, I think that would be their hope as well. Because you never know how it goes. Shoot, if we stink it up after one year, I’m probably done. If we play really good, they’ll probably want to go again.”
Rivers said last season he was open to playing elsewhere but was believed to be weighing retirement recently. But it looks like teams will have Rivers to consider this offseason, which may feature an unusual amount of quarterback movement.
The eight-time Pro Bowler did not play well last season, regressing considerably from a strong 2018 performance that ended with the Chargers winning 12 games and reaching the divisional round. But Rivers’ 2019 work nearly got him benched for Tyrod Taylor in December. But Bolts GM Tom Telesco said the veteran was still capable of playing at a high level after the season; another team will have the chance to find out.
Rivers has started 224 straight games — second-most in NFL history by a quarterback — since taking over for Drew Brees in San Diego 14 years ago. A few teams figure to be interested in allowing him to extend that streak. The Buccaneers have been mentioned as a possible Rivers destination. He has since moved his family to north Florida. Rivers worked with Colts staffers Frank Reich and Nick Sirianni while with the Chargers and remains close to both coaches, per Albert Breer of SI.com. While Breer adds the Titans to the prospective suitor list, Rivers would prefer he land with a Super Bowl contender.
“Certainly you want a chance to win a championship, but it’s not just about that,” Rivers said, via Farmer. “If you told me right now, ‘You’re going to play for two years, and you’re going to be good. But y’all will not win a Super Bowl. Will you still play?’ Heck yeah, I’ll still play.”
“So it’s not like it’s a Super Bowl or nothing. But if it’s a team where it’s going to be tough sledding and they’re two years away from even having a chance, and they led the league in most sacks given up or something, then it’s, ‘I don’t think so, guys.’”