The Seattle Seahawks are 10-3, and get to play the Indianapolis Colts in Week 15, for what only a few weeks ago looked like a very tough matchup.
But after Daniel Jones suffered a season-ending Achilles injury, the Colts called Philip Rivers to come out of retirement, and the 44-year-old is now going to start Sunday's matchup vs. Seattle, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL Network.
Coming out of retirement after the 2020 season, Rivers' decision is already a wild one. But Ben Solak of ESPN shared a statistic that makes this unretirement all the more improbable.
Colts' Phillip Rivers unretires, faces young Seahawks defense
"9 of the Seahawks' starters on defense weren't yet in the league the last time Phillip Rivers played," Solak shared on Twitter/X. While that "9" number is a little off due to injury, it's still a remarkable statistic.
Rivers last played in the NFL during the 2020 season. He started 16 games for the Colts, and went 11-5 before losing in round one of the playoffs in his age-39 season.
Five years later, with Rivers on the Pro Football Hall of Fame ballot, he's coming out of retirement to lead a Colts offense that just lost Jones for the rest of the season.
As Solak points out, nine of the 11 Seahawks starters on defense weren't in the NFL when Rivers last played in 2020. With some injuries, that number has shrunk a bit.
Julian Love, Leonard Williams, Jarran Reed, and Demarcus Lawrence, four of the 11 starters this week, were in the NFL the last time that Rivers played.
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But Nick Emmanwori, Riq Woolen, Coby Bryant, Devon Witherspoon, Boye Mafe, Ernest Jones IV, Drake Thomas, and Byron Murphy II weren't in the league in 2020, the last time Rivers played.
While there are 12 players listed, depending on the formation, 8-of-11 defenders on the field Sunday for Seattle could have entered the NFL in the years since Rivers retired in 2020.
This statistic shows just how improbable this comeback for Rivers is. He's unretiring five years after his initial decision. Rivers is on the Hall of Fame ballot and will reset his five-year clock to get another chance to play for the Colts.
His first task will be a very young Seahawks defense, led by some of the best young defensive backs in the NFL, in Witherspoon and Emmanwori.
The Seahawks and Colts Week 15 matchup will be an incredibly interesting one. The Seahawks defense is arguably the best in the NFL, and a 44-year-old Rivers will face them in his first action since coming out of a five-year retirement.
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