Stampede Blue
This six-part Colts What If series looks back at some of the biggest turning points in franchise history, from the Peyton Manning draft decision to playoff heartbreak, quarterback pivots and coaching chaos, while revisiting what happened, what could have changed, and how different the Colts might look if one major moment had gone the other way.
For Part 3, we move into the modern Colts era and one of the first major quarterback pivots after Andrew Luck’s retirement.
Philip Rivers only spent one season in Indianapolis, but it was a successful one. The Colts went 11-5 in 2020, made the playoffs, and pushed a very good Buffalo Bills team in the wild-card round. Rivers was not the quarterback he had been in his prime with the Chargers, but he was still effective. He could still read defenses, control the offense, get the ball out quickly and keep the Colts offense humming.
Then he retired, but there were quotes and interviews that made it seem he would’ve stayed for another season had he been offered by Indianapolis.
That decision pushed the Colts into the Carson Wentz trade, and everything changed from there. Indianapolis gave up a 2021 third-round pick and a conditional 2022 pick that became a first-rounder because Wentz played enough snaps. The trade was supposed to stabilize the quarterback position and reunite Wentz with Frank Reich, the coach who had helped him play the best football of his career in Philadelphia.
Instead, it became a one-year waste. The Colts missed the playoffs, collapsing in Jacksonville, moved on from Wentz immediately, and lost premium draft capital in the process. So the question is simple: what if Rivers came back for one more year?
The answer is not that Rivers would have solved the Colts’ long-term quarterback problem. He was too old for that. The better answer is that he probably would have given the Colts a cleaner 2021 season, saved them from the Wentz trade, and left the organization with far more flexibility to find the next quarterback.
By the time Rivers got to Indianapolis, everyone knew what he was and what he was not.
He was not going to beat teams with mobility. He was not going to consistently drive the ball outside the numbers with the same arm strength he had earlier in his career. The deep passing game was limited, and there were certain throws that just were not as available anymore. Against the best teams, that always put some kind of ceiling on the offense.
That said, Rivers still knew how to play quarterback at a high level. Heck, he even proved it this year after a long retirement and no arm strength.
His ability to read defenses was invaluable. He understood where pressure was coming from, knew how to get the offense into the right looks, and rarely looked overwhelmed by the moment. He also fit what Frank Reich wanted to do. The Colts had a strong...
