Quarterback who unretired tipped to follow Tom Brady’s $375m path as NFL’s new top TV target

Fresh off his NFL re-retirement, Philip Rivers could be the next in line for a role in TV broadcasting.

It was one of the biggest – and most encapsulating – stories of the 2025 NFL season.

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The future Pro Football Hall of Famer stunned the league when he came out of retirement at 44-years-young to help out the Indianapolis Colts in their time of need.

Rivers, who had initially retired from the league after the 2020 season, returned for a three-game cameo after Colts quarterback Daniel Jones – who was already playing on a fractured fibula in a contract year – went down with a torn Achilles.

With backup Anthony Richardson also out for the season with injury, rookie Riley Leonard was the only signal caller left on the roster.

But with zero experience in the league, Colts head coach Shane Steichen – who previously worked with Rivers – made a desperate plea to the 17-year veteran to return four years after hanging up his cleats.

In his three games, Rivers completed 63 percent of his passes for 544 yards and four touchdowns to three interceptions, but failed to help the Colts qualify for the post-season as the team stumbled to 8-9 on the season despite an 8-2 start.

Rivers touted for media role

Having then been tipped to be a serious head coach candidate in the league’s latest coaching cycle, amid links to Josh Allen‘s Buffalo Bills before he withdrew his name from consideration, Rivers is once again in the headlines as a new career opportunity is rumored to have presented itself.

In what has been a huge media shake-up around the league, the eight-time Pro Bowler could become a regular feature on fans’ TV screens.

According to Front Office Sports, following the news that former Pittsburgh Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin had swapped the sidelines of the gridiron for the NBC studio, Rivers could be the latest domino to fall.

“CBS Sports has an open QB chair on the set of The NFL Today thanks to Matt Ryan’s departure to the Falcons front office,” FOS’ Michael McCarthy wrote on Monday.

“Ditto for Fox Sports’s iconic Fox NFL Sunday pregame show with the retirement of Jimmy Johnson, and NBC’s Football Night in America following Chris Simms’ exit.

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“And then there’s the streamers. Earlier this month, FOS’s Ryan Glasspiegel reported that YouTube and the NFL have entered a contract review for a five-game package.“

While Rivers may be in huge demand, and could yet follow in the footsteps of his former on-field rival and all-time great quarterback Tom Brady, who signed a 10-year, $375 million deal to become Fox’s lead color commentator from the 2024 season back in 2022, he may not want to enter a career in the media.

“I don’t know,” Rivers said when Kay Adams pressed him about doing media back in January. “I’ve not ruled it out.

“But every opportunity that’s been close to coming or has come up just hasn’t felt right. I haven’t completely ruled it out. I do think that I would enjoy that. I just don’t know.

“The one thing I’ve loved since I was however old playing this game and being now as a coach is I’ve been able to have some impact on the score.

“And, for me, it’s like you might be good at it, talking about it, but I have nothing to do with the outcome of this game.”

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While other NFL quarterbacks such as that of Troy Aikman with ESPN ($18 million) and Tony Romo with CBS ($18 million) now make more than they did on the field, Rivers – who made $244 million during his playing career, per Spotrac – also has a huge family to consider.

A father of 10, Rivers would have to bear in mind whether he would prefer to do a once-a-week gig as a studio analyst as opposed to traveling around the country for half the week for games.

That is, of course, if he wants to at all.

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