The Reich Stuff: The Dynasty Impact of Philip Rivers in Indianapolis

Ken Kelly Posted On March 17, 2020

The Indianapolis Colts made a huge move yesterday by trading their first round draft pick to the San Francisco 49ers in exchange for defensive lineman DeForest Buckner. With that move effectively taking them out of the running for the elite quarterbacks in this year’s draft class, they addressed the position today by signing 16-year veteran Philip Rivers to take the helm next season. This move effectively throws in the towel on the Jacoby Brissett experiment and has some dynasty impact in the process. Let’s run down the players affected by the move.

Philip Rivers, QB IND

Over his 16-year career in San Diego and Los Angeles, Rivers had put together a stellar resume featuring 59,271 passing yards, 397 touchdowns and 198 interceptions. Seeing him in a different uniform will be bizarre, but that’s the reality in today’s NFL. Rivers was not great last season as he seemed to force the ball far too often and threw for 20 interceptions or more for just the third time in his career, making it safe to wonder just how much he may have left in the tank. Still, he’s been extremely durable and hasn’t missed a game in 14 straight seasons, which is nearly unheard of. In Indianapolis, he will be reunited with Frank Reich, whom he had his best four seasons with while Reich was the offensive coordinator with the Chargers. There will be no quarterback competition with the Colts as Rivers is getting a reported $25 million for one season, so we are going to clearly see just how much Father Time has taken from him.

In fantasy, Rivers has been a relatively solid QB2 as of late, but certainly not one to hang your season on. Last year, he was the QB23 in terms of points per game average and that sounds like the range he could find himself in again. He will need to minimize chances, but he will get to work with a great offensive line and is already familiar with the offense. If things go well, it’s feasible to think Rivers could be a very solid contributor as a bye week fill in or streaming option at the position if you encounter an injury to your top-end starter. Rivers is currently our QB30 with an ADP of 239 – that seems about right.

riversadp

Jacoby Brissett, QB IND

Well, that didn’t work out too well in the end. Brissett was solid at the beginning of last season after being thrown into the fire as Andrew Luck’s sudden replacement. However, he really faded at the end of the year, failing to surpass 165 passing yards or throwing for a single touchdown over the last three games of 2019. The Colts could choose to keep Brissett and pay him (they have the cap space to do that and have expressed a desire to do exactly that), but you can expect them to get some calls, possibly from the suddenly Tom Brady-less Patriots, with whom he’s obviously very familiar. If he stays with the Colts, his value will tank in the short-term. If he leaves, he could find himself with a rapidly rising ADP yet again. At any rate, he’s in for a value change one way or another here in the next few days. Stay tuned, but this wasn’t a great day for his dynasty owners.

brissettadp

Tyrod Taylor, QB LAC

At this moment in time, Taylor is the starting quarterback of the Chargers. Head Coach Anthony Lynn has repeatedly thrown praise his way and told many he believes Taylor could be their starting quarterback next season. However, it’s fair to say that’s not exactly “Plan A” for the Chargers. With players like Tom Brady and Cam Newton on the market, the expectation is Taylor gets replaced by the end of the week. Still, if he’s available and if you have access to the waiver wire with a free roster spot, you could do worse.

TY Hilton, WR IND

Health is the biggest obstacle for Hilton this season as he attempts to return from an injury-shortened season. However, he should benefit from more competent quarterback play, especially if the Colts add some more weapons to take coverage off him. The move doesn’t vault his value higher that much, but I do believe it stabilizes him as our WR32 and that ranking could rise during the season.

The Rest of the Colts Offense

On paper, the move certainly looks like a solid one (at least temporarily) for players like Jack Doyle and Marlon Mack. Time will tell, but the Colts could have done a lot worse here. You would also expect them to be in the market for a receiver as early as round two of the upcoming NFL Draft. It would be a pretty solid landing spot for a player like CeeDee Lamb or Jerry Juedy.

2020 Rookie Quarterbacks

The Chargers have been the subject of great speculation in terms of a possible landing spot for a rookie quarterback. If they fail to land a player like Brady or Newton, it’s possible we see Taylor as a bridge quarterback next season. With players like Austin Ekeler, Mike Williams and Keenan Allen, this team looks like a great landing spot for a player like Tua Tagovailoa, Jordan Love or Justin Herbert.

Author
Recent Posts

Ken Kelly

Co-Founder at DynastyLeagueFootball

Ken is a corporate trainer by day an a tireless editor of dynasty content by night. His passion for the World Champion Seattle Seahawks is second only to his love of fantasy football and the dynasty format.

Ken is on Twitter at DLF_KenK