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All signs point to 44-year-old Philip Rivers starting for the Indianapolis Colts in his first NFL game since the 2020 season this Sunday against the Seattle Seahawks.
While the Colts and their fanbase didn’t have it on their bingo cards this season, it’s the reality after a season-ending Achilles injury to Daniel Jones and as rookie Riley Leonard deals with a knee ailment this week.
Rivers joins a Colts team fighting for an AFC playoff seed, sitting one game back of the AFC South lead behind the Jacksonville Jaguars, who they lost to in Week 14. As it stands today, the Colts are No. 8 in the AFC with just seven teams making the cut from each conference.
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Indianapolis Colts quarterback Philip Rivers (17) warms up during practice Wednesday, Dec. 10, 2025, at the Colts practice facility in Indianapolis. (IMAGIN)
So while some doubt Rivers, the 17-year vet who ranks seventh in all-time NFL passing yards, can get the job done for Indy, one of his receivers from the 2020 season thinks he can.
Michael Pittman Jr.’s first NFL quarterback was Rivers when he joined the Colts during the 2020 season, where the signal caller led the team to an 11-5 record. After seeing him back in the building this week, Pittman couldn’t help but describe Rivers as someone who still has “the same fire.”
“Phil’s the same guy,” Pittman said while discussing his partnership with Oral-B, the official toothbrush of the NFL. “I really don’t feel that much difference from our 2020 season and he’s fired up. He’s ready to go. So I don’t know what’s going to happen. I don’t really think anybody does, but we’ll be ready for whatever happens.”
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It makes sense that Rivers would have his fair share of doubters. He hasn’t seen NFL action in five seasons, and he was never the most mobile quarterback anyway, which he joked during his media session Wednesday.
But Pittman believes football fans are overlooking a key aspect of this – Colts head coach Shane Steichen’s offense was born with the then-San Diego Chargers.
“Looking back on it, Philip really helped invent this offensive scheme if you go back to Shane’s history and when he was a young coach,” Pittman explained, referencing Steichen’s six years as the Chargers’ quarterbacks coach alongside Rivers. “He really came up in the same offense that Philip has run his whole career.
“If we’re going to get a guy, and that’s what people overlook. This offense was built by Philip Rivers, so that’s why he’s one of the perfect guys to go out and get. His mind is so sharp and he still has that same fire.”
Michael Pittman Jr. of the Indianapolis Colts celebrates with quarterback Philip Rivers (17) during an NFL game against the Las Vegas Raiders on Dec. 13, 2020, in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Cooper Neill/Getty Images)
Rivers’ cerebral processing on the field has always been solid, which is why he lasted so long in the league. But the internal drive and hunger for competition is what Pittman also sees early in practice.
“He said the word stinking probably 100 times when he gave his speech, and I could just tell he really cares,” Pittman said, laughing. “He wouldn’t reset his Hall of Fame if he didn’t really, really care about this.”
Of course, Rivers’ patented “Dadgummit!” is not what Pittman wants to hear in the next four games if the Colts play him at quarterback. It was something Pittman admitted to hearing a lot in his rookie year, but he has developed into the talent many thought he would be in the NFL.
We’ll see if the Colts make it official later this week, but Pittman couldn’t be more confident in Rivers if he gets the call.
PERFECTLY CLEAN, PERFECT PLAY
Pittman teamed up with Oral-B, which was recently named the official toothbrush of the NFL, and shot some fun content with the beloved Colts mascot, Blue.
Pittman and Blue tried to get their pearly whites clean with the new iO Series electric toothbrush, and while Blue is known for his moving stomach during games, he also had a huge set of teeth to get right before the game.
As someone who never deviates from his gameday routine, it starts with brushing his teeth before anything else in the morning.
“The smile is everything,” Pittman said. “Oral-B is the official toothbrush of the NFL and I just felt like it was a perfect partner because they give you the perfect clean so you can play the perfect game with their IO Series toothbrush that they just came out with. It does all the work for you, so it couldn’t be easier.”
