NC State football fans may have a new favorite team in the NFL.
According to reports, the Indianapolis Colts have signed signal-caller Philip Rivers to a one-year, $25 million deal after the Wolfpack legend spent 16 years quarterbacking the Chargers.
Rivers completed 4,908 of 7,591 passes (64.7 percent) for 59,271 yards and 397 touchdowns in his career with the Chargers. He led the NFL in touchdown passes in 2008 and passing yards two seasons later. The eight-time Pro Bowler is sixth all-time in league history in passing yards, throwing scores and passes completed, and he is 10th in passer rating (95.1) and passing yards per game (260.0).
The Chargers acquired Rivers after the New York Giants selected him with the fourth overall pick in the 2004 NFL Draft.
Rivers is likely to assume the starting job for the Colts from another former NC State quarterback in Jacoby Brissett, who completed 272 of 447 passes (60.9 percent) for 2,942 yards, 18 touchdowns and six picks. He also rushed for 228 yards and four scores and accumulated a passer rating of 88.0. Brissett, a former third-round pick of the New England Patriots, counts for almost $16 million on the Colts’ salary cap, and could be a potential trade target.
In addition to boasting one of the league's top offensive lines, the Colts also have former NCSU running back Nyheim Hines on its roster. Hines, who just finished his second year with Indianapolis after being drafted in the fourth round in 2018, returned two punts for touchdowns and piled up 923 all-purpose yards last season.
Rivers' addition could be a boon for Hines' career. Hines is the most proven passing-game weapon among Colts' running backs, and Rivers' top receiving back last season was Austin Ekeler, who hauled in 92 passes for 993 yards and eight touchdowns in 2019.
Many NC State fans give the Carolina Panthers a hard time about routinely bypassing Wolfpack players in the NFL Draft, but the franchise has not been devoid of former NCSU players. Most notably, receiver Jerricho Cotchery played a large role in the 2015 Panthers' 15-1 season that ended with a Super Bowl loss to the Denver Broncos.
Juston Burris would love to have similar successes for his home state team. The Raleigh native signed a two-year, $8 million deal with Carolina.
Burris played cornerback at NC State, but he found his success last year at safety for the Cleveland Browns. He started nine of 14 games after being picked up following the season opener and had 32 tackles (26 solo), two interceptions, five passes broken up, two tackles for loss, a sack, a forced fumble and two quarterback hurries.
Burris was selected in the fourth round of the 2016 NFL Draft by the New York Jets and played two full seasons there before being released four games into the 2018 campaign. The Browns picked him up, but after playing four games for them in 2018, he was cut as part of Cleveland's final preseason roster moves last year. The Raiders picked him up, only to waive him Sept. 19, which is when the Browns claimed him back.
Another former NC State player who will be earning a large payday is offensive lineman Joe Thuney, who received the franchise tag from the New England Patriots. That means he would get over $15 million for the 2020 season. The former third-round draft pick had been expected to be one of the top available guards on the free agent market.
Other former NC State players who are free agents include quarterback Mike Glennon, defensive back Dontae Johnson, safety Josh Jones, guard Ted Larsen and defensive tackle T.Y. McGill.
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