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The rumors and rumblings about Philip Rivers to the Indianapolis Colts are slowly coming to a head. Per Stephen Holder, the Colts beat writer for The Athletic, “everything indiciates (Rivers) is their No. 1 target.”
Let me elaborate...Per sources, the Colts indeed continue talks w free agent QB Philip Rivers. No deal yet, but everything indicates he is their No. 1 target. Nothing is ever done until it's done (see: Josh McDaniels), so the Colts have considered alternatives as well. Stay tuned https://t.co/fTdM4D5NXu
— Stephen Holder (@HolderStephen) March 17, 2020
Obviously there is no deal done and if you’re the Colts, as Holder mentions in the above tweet, they want to play this carefully to avoid another Josh McDaniels situation from two years ago when he tentatively agreed to become their next head coach before pulling out of the agreement at the last second.
On Philip Rivers… One thing the Colts felt was decisive in their losses down the stretch last season was the discrepancy in big plays bw them and opponents. They have a very specific formula of various categories that predicts winning. Big plays was a problematic area. https://t.co/BMOMcv4QRK
— Stephen Holder (@HolderStephen) March 17, 2020
It’s a little funny to read that the Colts want to get better at explosive/big plays going forward as being one of the reasons why they want to sign Rivers. Part of being better about creating explosive plays on offense is also being able to limit the bad plays so they don’t nullify each other. Rivers had over 20 interceptions in 2019. Yeah he could help create some bigger plays but you’re playing with fire if you think you can limit his pension for dangerous throws.
For what it’s worth, Bleacher Report’s Matt Miller also tweeted this out a little bit ago:
Just texted with a #Colts source who said Philip Rivers deal is "all but done".
— Matt Miller (@nfldraftscout) March 17, 2020
Maybe the deal is closer than we think. Either way, this was seen coming from a mile away. The Colts never go long without a pretty good quarterback, it seems like.