Philip Rivers

Philip Rivers

Rivers in 2016
No. 17 Los Angeles Chargers
Position:	Quarterback
Personal information
Date of birth:	(1981-12-08) December 8, 1981 (age 35)
Place of birth:	Decatur, Alabama
Height:	6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)
Weight:	228 lb (103 kg)
Career information
High school:	Athens (AL)
College:	North Carolina State
NFL Draft:	2004 / Round: 1 / Pick: 4
Career history
San Diego / Los Angeles Chargers (2004–present)
Roster status:	Active
Career highlights and awards
6× Pro Bowl (2006, 2009–2011, 2013, 2016) NFL Comeback Player of the Year (2013) NFL passing yards leader (2010) NFL passing touchdowns co-leader (2008) San Diego Chargers 50th Anniversary Team ACC Athlete of the Year (2004) ACC Rookie of the Year (2000)
Career NFL statistics as of Week 17, 2016
Pass attempts: 5,917 Pass completions: 3,811 Percentage: 64.4 TD–INT: 314–156 Passing yards: 45,833 Passer rating: 94.7 Player stats at NFL.com

Philip Michael Rivers (born December 8, 1981) is an American football quarterback for the Los Angeles Chargers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at North Carolina State University, and was drafted in the first round of the 2004 NFL Draft with the fourth overall pick by the New York Giants, who traded him to the Chargers for their first overall pick, quarterback Eli Manning. Rivers' career passer rating of 95.7 is fifth-best all-time among NFL quarterbacks with at least 1,500 passing attempts. Rivers is ranked 4th all-time in consecutive starts by a quarterback in NFL history.

After starting Chargers' quarterback Drew Brees went to the New Orleans Saints following the 2005 season, Rivers led the Chargers to a 14-2 record in his first season as a starter. In 2007, he helped the Chargers win their first playoff game since 1994 after beating the Tennessee Titans in the wildcard round of the 2007 playoffs and eventually leading them to the AFC Championship Game.

Rivers was born in Decatur, Alabama, where his father, Steve, was the head coach of Decatur High's football team and his mother, Joan, was a teacher. Rivers went to Decatur then moved to Athens. As part of a fifth-grade project, he had to make a poster about his dreams and aspirations. On the poster, he pasted his face over that of a Minnesota Vikings player who had appeared on a cover of Sports Illustrated. He has worn the number 17 jersey since the ninth grade; it is in honor of his father, who wore the same number in high school. After his dad, Steve, got the head coaching job, Rivers played high school football at Athens High School in nearby Athens. Rivers' first start in an official game came in the seventh grade, in 1994. He would not see the bench again until his rookie season in the NFL.