This is a story that ends with, in true Philip Rivers fashion, the word dadgummit.
And how the 44-year-old Rivers and the 8-5 Colts got to that end point, dadgummit, is one heck of a story.
It starts in the gloomy aftermath of the Colts' 36-19 loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars on Sunday at EverBank Stadium. The Colts hadn't just lost the game, their divisional lead and their top-seven seed in the AFC. They lost their starting quarterback in Daniel Jones, whose season ended when he sustained a torn Achilles' on a third-and-eight dropback late in the first quarter.
Making matters worse, quarterback Riley Leonard – who impressed coaches and teammates with his competitiveness amid difficult circumstances on Sunday – informed the team his knee didn't feel right.
So when general manager Chris Ballard and head coach Shane Steichen huddled after the game, they did so staring down some potentially-bleak possibilities behind center for the final four games of a season in need of a rapid turnaround.
"Sunday after the game after Daniel went down and we found out about Riley's knee," Steichen said, "we were like, 'what are we going to do?'"
Meanwhile, in Fairhope, Ala., Rivers had watched the Colts' loss to the Jaguars. He saw Jones go down and grab at his Achilles', ending what was a remarkable season for the 28-year-old former New York Giant.
"I feel terrible for Daniel," Rivers said. "... He was having a heck of a year."
And then, a thought crossed Rivers' mind: "I wonder if Shane will call later."
That thought was quickly followed by another one: "Ah, I don't know."
Back in Jacksonville, Ballard and Steichen talked through some options of who they could bring in, but finding a starting-caliber quarterback at any point during a season is challenging, let alone in Week 15.
But an idea then was raised:
"Let's call Philip and see what he says."
Steichen has, for years, discussed Rivers as a paragon of quarterbacking play, and as a person who deeply impacted his own journey through the coaching ranks. The two spent eight years together with the San Diego/Los Angeles Chargers, with Steichen rising from a defensive assistant to an offensive quality control coach to Rivers' quarterbacks coach and then offensive coordinator.
To say Steichen and Rivers see the game the same way feels like an understatement. Their brains are wired similarly, whether it's with their vocabulary, gesticulations and mannerisms or when they'd throw a corner route against a certain coverage.
"He's one of the most passionate players I've ever been around," Steichen said. "The obsession for the game is off the charts."
And while Rivers is a massive part of Chargers lore, he spent a year in Indianapolis, and that familiarity with the Colts – which developed even within the restrictions of the 2020 COVID season – counted for something here, too.
So those factors led Rivers, when he got the call from the Colts on Sunday night, to say: "Heck yeah, I'm interested."
Ballard and Steichen told Rivers to sleep on it. He did, and Monday morning, he had a proposal.
"I need to get up there," Rivers told them. "I need to get up there and throw, get in that building, start moving around."
So Rivers, later on Monday, arrived in Indianapolis and went to the Indiana Farm Bureau Football Center. Maybe for the first time in his life, he walked into the building without having to first get a Q-tip shoved up his nose.
Rivers, then, grabbed a football and went through a workout. The Colts were pleased with how Rivers looked in that session.
"He didn't forget how to throw a football," Steichen said.
Rivers spent the night in a hotel, mulling over the weight of the decision he now had to make. The Colts were interested. But was he going to be all-in on ending his retirement nearly five full years after taking his last snap in the NFL?
"I wasn't really hanging on any hope of playing again. I thought that ship had kind of sailed," Rivers said. "But something about it excited me. It's kind of one of those deals – the door opens and you can either walk through it and find out if you can do it, or run from it."
Rivers considered the risks. His wife – "my biggest fan the whole time I played," he said – was nervous about the physical aspect of strapping on a helmet and shoulder pads and facing some of the fastest, most physical and biggest humans on the planet. And of course Rivers himself questioned if this was the right thing to do.
"Who wouldn't have doubt after five years, you know?" Rivers said.
Most players, once their playing career is over, are done. Rivers was at peace with the decision he made back in the early days of 2021, when he called then-Colts coach Frank Reich on a trail north of Indianapolis and told him he was retiring.
But, on Sunday into Monday into Tuesday morning, a shot to do the thing he loves had arisen. It was unexpected. But it was staring Rivers in the face. And, as Rivers thought more about it, he became more and more excited at the opportunity.
"Is that doubt real or not?" Rivers said. "The only way you can find out is to go."
On Tuesday, Rivers called up Ballard and Steichen. He made his decision.
"Dadgummit," Rivers said, "let's freaking go."
Where this all leads is still uncertain on Wednesday. Rivers still needs to go through a full week of practice for both he and the Colts to determine if he's ready to play Sunday against the Seattle Seahawks.
So, actually, the biggest story in the NFL this week – heck, maybe this season – did not conclude with a "dadgummit." Its end is unwritten.
But dadgummit, aren't you fascinated to see where it goes?
