It’s not exactly shocking now that just five months after signing a one-day contract to retire as a Charger, Philip Rivers is back in the NFL. Only this time, he’s expected to run the Indianapolis Colts ‘ offense, after Daniel Jones suffered a season-ending Achilles injury and Riley Leonard went down with a knee issue. But Indy wasn’t the only team that tried to lure the 44-year-old quarterback out of retirement.

Rivers actually had a chance to return years earlier. Think back to the 2022 season, when the San Francisco 49ers quietly explored the idea of bringing him in for a late-season quarterback role under Kyle Shanahan . The timing made sense: the 49ers were playing the Philadelphia Eagles in the NFC Championship Game, and chaos hit early.

In the first quarter, B

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