New San Diego Chargers coach Mike McCoy inherited Philip Rivers, an aging veteran quarterback coming off back-to-back down seasons.
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If Rivers is on the hook to prove he's still the answer in what some are calling a "final audition" in San Diego, the 31-year-old passer isn't sweating it.
"As far as whatever the numbers say over the last few years, and I say this humbly and respectfully, I played in 110 straight games or more, and have thrown a bunch of touchdowns, and over a seven-year period the ratio of touchdowns and interceptions is pretty dang good," Rivers told Tom Krasovic of U-T San Diego.
"So, I don't feel like, 'Oh, man, I'm in a struggling mode,' or 'Gosh, if I don't play (well) this year, I'm out of football.' "
Rivers has, indeed, tossed a career 189 touchdowns to just 93 interceptions, but his decision-making in big spots has been spotty in recent days. Rivers is responsible for 47 turnovers over the past two campaigns. More concerning, his once-powerful arm has lost strength, and tape reveals Rivers missed on too many location throws in 2012.
To be fair, Rivers has been punished behind one of the NFL's worst offensive lines, taking 79 sacks over the past two seasons. He isn't a player who can get outside the pocket, but few quarterbacks would have survived back there.
Rivers has lost some juice, but until the Chargers draft, sign or mold out of clay a group of tangible linemen to protect him, it's impossible to know what he's still capable of.
Follow Marc Sessler on Twitter @MarcSesslerNFL.
