NEED TO KNOW
44-year-old quarterback Philips River said he’s “grateful” to have played in his first game back with the Indianapolis ColtsRivers told reporters it was “a blast” but ultimately the Colts are “disappointed” about their 18-16 lossThe Colts have three games left as they approach the postseason: against the Texans, the 49ers and the Jaguars

Philip Rivers had “a blast” in his return to the NFL.

After the 44-year-old quarterback played his first game back for the Indianapolis Colts on Sunday, Dec. 14, Rivers spoke to media about the emotions he felt in his return. “I was just thankful, grateful, that I was out there,” Rivers said, according to ESPN and Fox.

He continued, “And it was a blast. It was a blast, but obviously the emotions now are disappointment,” referring to the Colts losing to the Seattle Seahawks 18-16, putting their shot at making the playoffs in question.

“This isn’t about me,” Rivers said after the loss. “We have a team scrapping like crazy to try and stay alive and get into the postseason.”

Philip Rivers on Dec. 14, 2025.

Steph Chambers/Getty

The quarterback — who became a grandfather after his eldest daughter, Halle, 23, welcomed a baby boy last year — said he and the Colts are “all disappointed” about the loss to Seattle. “We came up just short,” he said, per ESPN.

The Colts have three more games coming up, against the Houston Texans, the San Francisco 49ers and the Jacksonville Jaguars, and Rivers said he feels good about their chances to win and make the playoffs.

“If I can stay healthy, I feel good, and it is going to get better as we go,” he told reporters.

“But the catch is that we’ve got to win,” Rivers said, adding that it “doesn’t really matter if it’s getting better as we go if we don’t win because it’s going to be over in three weeks.”

When asked about the physicality of playing in his first game since returning, Rivers said he “never minded that part of it.

“My wife always tells me I’m crazy because there’s been times in the last three or four years I’ve said, ‘I wish I could just throw one and get hit — hard.’ ”

Philip Rivers on Dec. 14, 2025.

Jane Gershovich/Getty

And Rivers added that he’s just proud of what he showed to his sons and the high school football team he coaches — St. Michael Catholic in Fairhope, Alabama — by playing on Sunday.

“Hopefully, my sons and those ball players that I’m in charge of at the school, they’ll say like, ‘Crap, coach wasn’t scared,’ ” he tearfully said.