Retired QB Philip Rivers leaves door open to NFL return later this year

Philip Rivers is in his first season as a high school football coach, and he enjoys it.

Still, he misses the NFL.

Enough to come back? Maybe later this year, he told The Los Angeles Times.

“I’m just going to stay ready," Rivers said. "I want to make sure I’m very clear: I’m not predicting I will play in December or January, for that matter. One, you’ve got to have somebody who wants you, and two, it’s got to be right.

“But I have not completely ruled that out.”

The 39-year-old Rivers played for the Indianapolis Colts last season, throwing for 4,169 yards and 24 touchdowns as they made the playoffs. He retired after the season, his 17th. He's the coach at St. Michael Catholic High School in Alabama but said he's staying in shape.

"I’m getting back there," he said. "I wouldn’t have made weight if I had to report last week, that’s for sure. But I am getting back into the lifting and running, and shoot, I occasionally throw a ball around out here in this heat. It’s not too hard to get a good lather going."

The Colts could need a quarterback before this season begins. Carson Wentz this week had surgery on a broken bone in his left foot, and his return date is uncertain.

This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Philip Rivers leaves door open to NFL return later this year