FIRST TAKE | NFL World owe Colts an apology! – Stephen A. on Philip Rivers’ performance vs. Seahawks

FIRST TAKE | NFL World owe Colts an apology! – Stephen A. on Philip Rivers’ performance vs. Seahawks

Prayer is seriously warranted for Philip Rivers this weekend if he is put out on that field. I'm very worried about him. He's a great guy. Um he was a great quarterback, arguably a Hall of Famer, definitely in some other people's eyes. We know what he can bring to the table when he was playing. The man hasn't played in 5 years. The very first time you step on a football field is against that defense. This how I'mma be watching Sunday's game. >> Well, Stephen A was worried for Philip Rivers health last week, but the 44year-old made it through unscathed and he nearly upset the Seahawks in his first game back in almost 5 years. Rivers threw a touchdown and set up his team for the go-ahead field goal with under a minute left. But it wasn't enough as the Seahawks responded with their own field goal to win 1816. Here's Philip Rivers after the game. >> Grateful. I mean, grateful uh running out for warm-ups and all that and out there for the anthem. And as the game just got going, I was just thankful, grateful uh that I was out there. Um and it was a blast. It was a blast, but obviously the emotions now are disappointment, right? Disappointment. I, you know, I'm uh this isn't about me. Um, you know, we got a team that is scrapping like crazy to try to stay alive and get in the postseason. So, obviously, we're all disappointed. Came up just short. >> Damen Woody is joining us here in studio, but we've got to go to Stephen A. The guy who was worried about Philip Rivers on Friday. So, Stephen A, are the Colts owed an apology after Philip Rivers performance? >> Yes, they are by me. I don't know about anybody else, but I'm a grown ass man and I'm gonna be fair-minded and I definitely owe the Indianapolis Colts an apology. I'm gonna stand right up here in national television. I'm saying I'm not joking. I'm dead serious. I was scared to death for Philip Rivers. I was scared to death. I'm like, wait a minute. Do you know yesterday marked 1,800 days since the last NFL game that he played? 1,800 days. Five years. Okay. I'm sitting there looking at it and I'm like, "Oh my god, this he ain't play in five years. He's 44 years of age. He was a stationary target. I'm sure can't move now. And he going up against Seattle. What What the hell are the Colts doing? This is This is criminal. Criminal." That's how I felt about it. Okay. And then Quinton Nelson and that crew. And I'm looking up these names right now with Travis, with Jaylen Travis, with Matt Conclaves, with uh Tana Partalone Partini or Bernard uh Raymond. I I'm looking at these brothers. They protected this man. He got hit four times the entire game. And Stik can give him credit because they got the ball out of his hands relatively quickly. 16 of his 18 passes with for under 10 yards. Got the ball got rid of the ball real quick. only threw for 87 yards in those situations. Only tried only attempted, you know, throwing beyond 10 yards about seven or eight times, but damn it, he was barely touched. And that offensive line did its job. And then I went back and I looked and I was like, damn, they have only given up 24 sacks the entire damn year. That offensive line does know how to protect its quarterback. And the Indianapolis Colts obviously knew they had a a stout offensive line that was capable of playing at an elite level and protecting the quarterback. And that's exactly what they did. Again, it was a collective effort because Philip Rivers is pretty damn smart. He's been around for a long time. Sikin, who he's very familiar with, pretty damn smart. You got to remember uh uh Philip Rivers son, Gunner, who he was coaching in high school. He was running the same offense that they said they'd be running with the Colts and stuff like that. So, he was familiar with the offense. All of those things come into play. But that offensive line protected that man all afternoon long. And obviously the Colts saw that a hell of a lot better than me and most people cuz I ain't going to front. I was scared to death for Philip Rivers. Everybody was talking about can he take him to the playoffs. I was like, can he get out of Sunday? Can he survive? Is he is he not going to be carded off the field? Whether it's concussion or a leg injury or something. I was scared to death for the brother and they showed up and they protected that man. They did their job. I gotta give credit where credit is due. I got to stand the hell down and say it was much to do about nothing. My concerns were unfounded based on what I saw yesterday. >> Well, listen, I don't owe anybody any type of apology in this situation. Why should I apologize for show for being concerned for Philip Rivers's health? Why should I should why should I be why should I apologize for being skeptical about someone who hasn't played in five years, you know, stepping back into the National Football League? Like my whole thing when it came to Philip Rivers, I initially I thought it was disrespectful and from the the the simple fact of being disrespectful as far as you're talking about the best of the best in the world. And to think that someone who's been on the couch for 5 years to step back into this game at 44 years old and come back and play in a critical game on the road against that Seattle Seahawks defense. Now, what I will do today is I will give Philip Rivers a round of applause because Philip Rivers, my man, like I was proud to watch you play, you know, like Philip Rivers moved around pretty good out there. He acquitted himself really well against arguably one of the best defenses in the National Football League in the Seattle Seahawks. And he had them a a stone throw away from a critical win on the road. So again, I'm not going to apologize, but I have much more admiration and listen, Philip Rivers is going to be a Hall of Fame quarterback in my opinion. But to be able to have the courage to step onto the field after 5 years, I got to tip my tip my cap. I give all the respect to that man, Philip Rivers. Okay. understanding that this network is owned by Disney and Disney loves to kind of put on these uh heartwarming and heartthrobbing stories. That's what Philip Rivers looked like yesterday. I'm not the person that's going to come in and say, "Hey, we don't owe them an apology, but you do not get no awards for just participating." Those are just, you know, youth awards. Now, when you look at yesterday's game, the thing that stands out is that they struggled to move the ball consistently. And I know that they were going against a damn good Seattle Seahawks team. Okay. What is another concern? Completing only two passes thrown more than five yards down the field. So, when you start to say, is somebody owed an award? I mean, is somebody owed an apology? is somebody is owed an explanation of what's going to be the the remedy moving forward. We have to push the ball downfield. And oh, and by the way, Indianapolis, if you want to make a deep playoff push, you have two of the more dominant defenses that you're going to have to face. That's the Texans and that's the Broncos. Those teams are not going to give you any type of success by merely relying on Jonathan Taylor just to run the football and to just to throw drag, drag, drag, slant, slant, slant, check down, check down, check down. It doesn't work like that. So for me, I was looking at a different lens where everybody was saying, "Oh my god, he's going to get killed." No, no, no, no. It was more or less to say what is the strategy behind putting Philip Rivers under center when now teams who are scouting you now understand that they don't have the ability to push the ball past 20 yards. And those are the things that if we're going to have any type of playoff run, we need to attack the defenses in many different phases and formats. And I don't see that being done in Indianapolis. Damian, forgive forgive Cam Newton's ignorance. Forgive his ignorance. I mean, America, forgive him. Forgive him. See, that's a young whippers snapper right there that's 36 years old. That's what he he 36. He don't understand. See, Cam, call me when you turn 40 and I want to talk to you at that particular moment. Tell how you moving. YOU SAYING WHEN YOU GET UP IN the morning, you a little BIT ROUGH. SEE THE PHYSICAL SPECIMEN THAT YOU ARE, YOU LACK A CERTAIN I'M GOING TO CALL YOU OUT HERE BECAUSE YOU WALK AROUND I I MEAN YOU YOU ONE OF THOSE DUDES THAT DAMIAN THIS BROTHER EAT a leaf and he's and he look like he growing JUST A MASSIVE MAMMOTH OF A MAN A A SPECIMEN. YOU EVERYBODY AIN'T A BUILT LIKE CAM. YOU UNDERSTAND? WE GOT TO SIT UP THERE AND CHECK IS THIS DUDE HUMAN? HOW MANY NFL players have walked through this network? This is before you've even arrived here Cam. People will walk into this studio to do shows, whether it was our show, it was Get Up with Greenie or anybody else, and they talk about how they were on the opposite side of the field and they were just staring at you. They were like that that that that's a quarterback. You understand? Not a linebacker. You not a defensive line. That's a QUARTERBACK RIGHT THERE. THAT'S HOW THEY WOULD LOOK. SEE, YOU DON'T UNDERSTAND. YOU 36 YEARS OLD, YOU YOUNG WHIPPERS SNAPPER. YOU DON'T KNOW BREATH SMELLING LIKE SIMILAC. YOU don't understand. WHEN YOU GET OLD. SEE, SEE, YOU YOU CAN TALK ABOUT THE FOOTBALL STUFF. YOU CAN TALK ABOUT THE FOOTBALL stuff all YOU WANT TO, BUT IN TERMS OF BEING A man that ages, let me tell you something right now, Cam. It ain't going to be that way at 40. Wait till you GET TELL HIM, WOODY. WAIT TILL YOU GET 45. I CAN TELL YOU ABOUT 50. STUFF CHANGES, MY BROTHER. Tough changes. When you look at Philip Rivers AT AGE 44 OUT ON THAT FOOTBALL FIELD YESTERDAY, you the appreciation you will have for him down the line would BE FAR DIFFERENT than the appreciation that you're having for him this morning. I can tell you that. >> So, are you celebrating more of Philip Rivers or you celebrating more of the Indianapolis Colts? Because I'm talking about the Indianapolis Colts. I ain't talking about Philip Rivers and him being 44. You know, I was looking at >> I wasn't talking about the whole team. I wasn't I wasn't talk I wasn't talking about the whole team. I was talking about the offensive line who WAS ASSIGNED TO PROTECT THEM. THAT'S WHAT I WAS TALKING ABOUT. HIM AND THEM. NOBODY ELSE ON THE COACH, BUT THAT OFFENSIVE LINE. OH, they they THEY THEY DID PROTECT THAT BROTHER YESTERDAY. NOW, he didn't get hit much. >> All I'm >> He really didn't. >> And all I'm saying without even him being hit much, he didn't push the ball down field, Stephen. A And that's cool. If we want to sit up here and congratulate the Indianapolis Colts, let's do it. Or, and it's not even the Indianapolis Colts, it's the Philip Rivers of the world. Yes, let's congratulate him. But I don't see any team fearing the Indianapolis Colts with Philip Rivers at the helm knowing that he can't not push the ball downfield. And that's all I'm saying. >> Okay. Okay. >> Well, coming up, we've got to talk about Josh Allen and what he did yesterday. He led an amazing comeback in New England. Did this result say more about the Bills or the Patriots? And the Chiefs playoffs hopes they ended yesterday, but there are much larger concerns in KC after Patrick Mahomes injury.

FIRST TAKE | NFL World owe Colts an apology! – Stephen A. on Philip Rivers’ performance vs. Seahawks