Philip Rivers is still finding ways to stay in the conversation, even with the Chargers sitting through a rough 0-3 start to the 2026 NFL season. A recent stop on the Move the Sticks Podcast with Daniel Jeremiah gave fans a look at what the former Chargers quarterback is doing now, along with a few sharp takes on quarterbacks past and present.
Rivers has been the head coach at St. Michael Catholic High School since 2021, taking that job after his first NFL "retirement" in 2020.
He’s been coaching his son, Gunner Rivers, a four-star quarterback prospect who is headed to N.C. State, following the family path to Rivers’ alma mater.
Gunner Rivers is expected to return "soon" and help his team turn around their season as they currently sit at 2-3 on the year.
Coaching high school football, Rivers said, forced him to adjust quickly. He admitted that he came in overprepared at first, then realized the job doesn’t demand the same level of detail as the NFL. He also had to recalibrate his expectations for the players themselves, understanding that these are students first and athletes second, and that many of them won’t keep playing after graduation.
The interview also revisited Rivers’ unexpected NFL return at the end of the 2025 season, when he came back after four years away and was suddenly asked to absorb an entire offense and face elite defenses almost immediately. He handled it well, and he said the biggest difference in that comeback was simple: it felt the same "neck up," but "neck down" was another story. Rivers also pointed to how much more coordinated NFL defenses have become, with the front seven and the back end disguising things together instead of giving away easy clues.
When the conversation turned to today’s quarterbacks, Rivers singled out Matthew Stafford, Josh Allen and Patrick Mahomes as players who can "do it all" and are advanced both physically and mentally. He was much less impressed with the overall state of the position, saying many quarterbacks are still stuck too far inside their first read.
"I had to depend on knowing where LT and Sproles and Woodhead were... there's too many guys now that can't do that. They don't know where the secondary, third read checkdowns are."
Rivers also reflected on the early part of his own career, when he sat behind Drew Brees for his first two seasons. He said it was hard not to be on the field, but the experience helped him see the game from a different angle. He compared that kind of learning environment to Fernando Mendoza’s current situation behind Kirk Cousins in the Raiders QB room.
He also talked about working with Josh Allen and Sam Darnold when they were younger, describing both of them as players who carried humility and confidence at the same time. Rivers said their love for football helped shape who they became.
That led into a note he shared from former Chargers defensive coordinator Gus Bradley, who said the worst three words to say are "I got it". Rivers’ point was clear: thinking you already have it can keep you from getting better.
One of the most surprising chapters of Rivers’ post-playing life came when he interviewed for the Buffalo Bills head coaching job after Sean McDermott was fired. He said the process moved fast, with a Wednesday call and a Friday flight, and that he didn’t come in with a presentation like most candidates.
It was just a notebook and himself. Rivers said he had to remind himself to be authentic, because that was what got him into the room.
He also said the four-hour conversations moved quickly and helped him grow, and that even though he didn’t get the job, he was grateful for the experience.
Rivers closed by naming some of the toughest opponents he ever faced: Luke Kuechly, Brian Urlacher, Jared Allen, Von Miller, Ray Lewis and Harrison Smith. He said he and Smith had plenty of competitive back-and-forth, trading checks at the line and going "tit for tat." Rivers also gave credit to Keenan Allen, Antonio Gates and Danny Woodhead, saying all three were elite at being on the same page with him, which made life easier against those top-tier defenders.
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