Colts heavily scouted Tom Brady before signing Philip Rivers

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Knowing they had to upgrade at the quarterback position this offseason, the Indianapolis Colts heavily debated between which veteran to pursue: Tom Brady or Philip Rivers?

Ultimately, we know the Colts went with Rivers given his fit in the offense and history with head coach Frank Reich. But that decision wasn’t made immediately.

Instead, Reich said in a conference call Tuesday that he heavily scouted Brady before free agency—including watching every snap over the last two seasons.

“I did tell you that we did look at all the guys and I will tell you that I looked at his (Brady’s) tape. The guy is incredible. I mean, I watched all of his tape from the last two years. I think he’s still playing at a super, super high level. We know he’s the best of all time for a reason (with) as many championships as he’s won,” Reich said. “I mean, he still threw a couple balls in games, I’m saying, ‘How’s this guy throwing this ball this far?’ He’s incredible.”

Brady eventually signed with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, joining former Colts assistant and interim head coach Bruce Arians down in Florida.

What the decision came down to was ultimately the fit in the offense. Reich and the rest of the front office felt that Rivers was the better fit for their scheme over Brady.

“I have the utmost respect for [Brady] as a player and competitor,” Reich said. “For us, we got the guy we thought was the right fit for us, but this is a guy who I respect and admire immensely, obviously along with everybody else.”

The Colts could certainly find their way into the quarterback class of the 2020 NFL draft, but they are hoping Rivers can make this offense strong enough to get them back into the playoffs.