If former Chargers linebacker Shawne Merriman’s information about former Chargers quarterback Philip Rivers is accurate, Saturday night’s Peacock exclusive game between the Bills and Chargers could have been more interesting. unknown.
Merriman told TMZ.com earlier this month that Rivers, who was last seen as the Colts’ quarterback who nearly upset the Bills in the wild-card round of the 2020 playoffs, still wants to play. .
“I can tell you,” Merriman said.Phil still wants to play”
Merriman said Rivers, 42, hasn’t officially retired because he still wants to play.
Certainly, Rivers would be a better (or at least more interesting) option for the Chargers than Easton Stick. Show your respect.
If Merriman made the statement after Dec. 10, it could mean something. Merriman and Rivers reunited that day to celebrate tight end Antonio Gates’ induction into the team’s Hall of Fame. Rivers may have said something to Merriman that day about him not really being finished.
“I still think Phillip can play another year or two if the team falls out of the playoffs here and needs a quarterback to come back,” Merriman said. “Phil can do it.”
But this is the reality. In a season that has featured 57 different starting quarterbacks, Rivers has not received a tryout. There is no evidence that he even received a call.
For Rivers to play again, someone has to want him.
Maybe someone will eventually.Last year, the 49ers were RReady to add river Had they beaten the Eagles in the NFC Championship without Brock Purdy, they would have been on the Super Bowl roster. And since Jimmy Garoppolo was still recovering from a foot injury at the time, Rivers could have gone straight from the couch to the starting lineup.
Perhaps he’s simply waiting for an opportunity to come knocking as the playoff field shrinks and the chances of chasing a championship become clearer. In a normal year, waiting for a quarterback to get hurt is a big pumpkin vigil. Quarterbacks are getting injured this year at a rate we haven’t seen in years, but you never know.
Merriman knows. Or he thinks he knows. Only Rivers knows if he will do it. But again, none of that matters until someone offers him a spot on the roster.