When the Pro Football Hall of Fame announces 15 finalists for its Class of 2026 later this month, Philip Rivers may or may not be among them – and it might not have anything to do with his career achievements.
Rivers, who hasn't played in the NFL since the 2020 season, signed with the Colts' practice squad on Wednesday. Joining the Colts' practice squad will not impact his eligibility for the Class of 2026; Rivers was named as one of 26 semifinalists earlier this year.
However, if Rivers is on the Colts' active gameday roster at any point, or if he were to be signed to the Colts' 53-man roster, it would re-set his eligibility clock for the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Players are eligible for the Pro Football Hall of Fame five years after last being on an active roster, meaning Rivers would not be up for Canton consideration until the Class of 2031.
But here's an important caveat: Rivers, right now, is not concerned with how this all will impact when he could potentially get into the Hall of Fame.
"It's a real honor to be mentioned with those other 25 guys, certainly," Rivers said. "But that's just not — I'm not holding my breath on that and I hadn't been counting down the years. And with all respect to the Hall, and if one day I could be a part of that group it would be special, no question about it.
"But the extension of that time, if it comes to be, was not a factor in my thinking."
From 2004-2020, Rivers built an impressive case for a gold jacket. His 63,440 passing yards are seventh-most all-time, while his 421 passing touchdowns are sixth-most in NFL history. Rivers is an eight-time Pro Bowler and threw for at least 4,000 yards and 23 touchdowns in 12 of his 15 seasons as a full-time starter.
Rivers would need 649 passing yards to pass former Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger for sixth on the all-time passing yards list, though current Los Angeles Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford is only 277 yards behind Rivers for seventh. Stafford is nine touchdowns behind Rivers on the all-time list; the gap between Rivers at No. 6 and Hall of Famer Brett Favre at No. 5 is 87 touchdowns.
We'll see if Rivers, now, will add to those totals – and if he delays his shot at Canton to help the Colts make a playoff push.
"I had not given any thought about actually playing again until about 48 hours ago," Rivers said. "This wasn't just any place or any coach. It's not like, shoot, I'll see what happens in the league and let's see if I can get ready. It wasn't that."
