Veteran Quarterback Philip Rivers Set To Be a Head Coaching Candidate This Offseason
Just when we thought the Philip Rivers saga had finally wrapped up its final chapter, the NFL scriptwriters threw us another curveball. We all watched the 44-year-old grandfather unretire, leave the comfort of his high school coaching gig, and try to salvage the Indianapolis Colts’ season. Sure, the 0-3 stretch wasn’t the fairytale ending anyone in Indy hoped for, but it was pure entertainment.
But apparently, the league isn’t ready to let Rivers go back to Alabama just yet. According to fresh reports from NFL Network insider Ian Rapoport, multiple teams are doing their homework on Rivers. Not as a quarterback this time, but as a legitimate head coaching candidate.
Why Teams Are Researching Rivers
It sounds wild on paper. Usually, you pay your dues. You grind as a Quality Control coach, work your way up to Quarterbacks Coach, maybe call plays as an Offensive Coordinator, and then you get the big headset. But Rivers isn’t your average candidate.
The buzz is that the Giants and Titans, who currently have vacancies, might be looking at Rivers. The logic? He’s a football savant. Anyone who watched him play for 17 years knows he was essentially an offensive coordinator on the field. His ability to diagnose defenses at the line of scrimmage was legendary, matched only by his elite-level trash talk.
The recent three-game stint with the Colts reportedly reminded league executives of his leadership. He walked into a locker room of guys half his age, and immediately commanded respect. That kind of presence is hard to find, and in a copycat league, teams might be looking for their own version of a Dan Campbell or a Jim Harbaugh: a former player who just gets it.
Family Ties Could Complicate the Jump
However, before we start putting Rivers onto an NFL sideline, there is a massive, human hurdle in the way: his family.
Rivers has been adamant about his current role as the head coach at St. Michael Catholic in Fairhope, Alabama. This isn’t just a hobby for him; he’s coaching his son, Gunner, who is set to be a senior quarterback next season. Rivers went on record saying he wants to be there for that. He wants to coach his boy.
For a guy who commuted from San Diego to Los Angeles just to be home for dinner, family has always been the priority. Leaving to take an NFL head coaching job is a 24/7/365 grind that would likely pull him away from that final high school season with his son.
The Verdict
Will Rivers take an interview? Rapoport thinks it’s likely he gets at least one request. Whether he accepts it is a different story. We know Rivers loves the game. You don’t come off the couch at 44 to face NFL pass rushers unless you have an addiction to competition. Being a head coach would allow him to impact the score. That is something he admitted he prefers over a broadcasting gig.
If an NFL team can convince Rivers that the timing is right, we might see him on the sidelines sooner rather than later.
