Philip Rivers benched on brink of Ben Roethlisberger record as Colts’ season ends in disaster

Dec 28, 2025 - 21:45

It still feels surreal that in 2025 Philip Rivers has returned to play football in the NFL.

But the 44-year-old‘s storybook ending with the Indianapolis Colts might be over after a 23-17 loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars.

After the Houston Texans defeated the Los Angeles Chargers 20-16 on Saturdays, the Colts were officially eliminated from the 2025 postseason, despite starting the regular season with a 7-1 record.

Coming out of their bye week at 8-2, they have since gone on a six-game skid, with quarterback Daniel Jones suffering a season-ending Achilles injury in Week 14 in a 36-19 defeat to the Jaguars.

With Anthony Richardson having been out with injury all season, and backup Riley Leonard nursing a PCL injury suffered in his first start for the Colts, Shane Steichen was successful in convincing Rivers to come out of retirement after five years away from the league.

This decision initially drew a plethora of criticism from voices around the NFL, but with his Hall of Fame eligibility clock reset, Rivers has played well enough to keep his team competitive.

Despite his remarkable comeback to football, Rivers was unable to get the fairytale ending that he was hoping for.

Even with the Colts now out of playoff contention, the decision was made for Rivers to start once again on Sunday against the Jags.

However, according to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport, Leonard will likely take over the reins as the starting quarterback in Indianapolis’ Week 18 clash against the Texans.

“The fact that they’re out of the playoffs does not bode well for next week for Philip Rivers,” Rapoport said.

“Today, Shane Steichen was asked, ‘Do they turn to Riley Leonard if they know that the Colts are no longer in?’ He said ‘No. On one day’s notice it wouldn’t be fair to him.’

“Next week, he’ll obviously have a lot more notice, and nobody wants this story to end. But the reality is, the Indianapolis Colts have to look to the future.

Rivers was picked off chasing a win on what could be his last game[/caption]

“Giving Riley Leonard a start at the end of the year and in a game that doesn’t mean anything makes a lot of sense for the Colts’ future. I would not be surprised if that is the direction that they decide to go in.”

Coming into Week 17, Rivers needed just 252 yards to surpass Ben Roethlisberger on the all-time passing yardage leaders list, but the St Michael’s High School football coach has earned more respect than anything in his decision to come back.

“He’s been coaching high school football and he’s having that team with him to watch it [the game] in person today because that has been such a big deal,” Curt Menefee said. “He really has been an inspiration to a lot of people, young and old.

“They’ve not won because of him,” Michael Strahan responded. “I think he’s done a great job. I think he’s surprised all of us.

“But watching him play is like watching that father who goes out and plays to show the son that anything is possible in life like a movie.”

Rivers finished with 147 passing yards in the loss to the Jaguars on Sunday, leaving him just 105 yards shy of surpassing Big Ben.

Now, it looks like he won’t have a chance to pass him in Week 18, as he’s likely headed for the bench.

As one door closes, another opens with sixth-round rookie Leonard looking to show he has what it takes to compete in a league Rivers graced for two decades.

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