Indianapolis Colts 2021 starting quarterback NFL odds: Carson Wentz, Matthew Stafford trade rumors swirling after Philip Rivers retires

While he never reached a Super Bowl, there's little doubt that Philip Rivers will be enshrined into the Pro Football Hall of Fame someday in Canton following Rivers' retirement after 17 NFL seasons Wednesday – the first 16 with the Chargers and the 2020 campaign with the Colts. He will now become the head football coach at St. Michael Catholic High School in Alabama. Indianapolis doesn't appear to have its 2021 starting QB on the roster, and SportsLine offers NFL odds on whom that might be.

Rivers retires ranking fifth all-time in passing touchdowns (421) and passing yards (63,440) -- trailing Super Bowl winners Drew Brees, Peyton Manning, Brett Favre and Tom Brady in each category. Perhaps even more impressive, Rivers started 240 consecutive regular-season games, the second-longest streak by a starting QB in NFL history behind only Favre (297).

At age 39, Rivers was still quite effective in 2020, completing 68 percent of his passes (third-best in his career) for 4,169 yards, 24 touchdowns and 11 picks for a rating of 97.0. Indy reached the playoffs as a wild card team but lost in Buffalo 27-24 on Jan. 9. That was really the issue with Rivers: He always ran into a better quarterback in his postseason career, usually Brady or Ben Roethlisberger -- who, like Rivers, was a first-round pick in the 2004 draft and who may also retire.

Rivers was 134-106 in his regular-season career as a starting QB but 5-7 in the playoffs; according to an SDQL search, he was 118-119-5 against the spread in the regular season (includes a couple of games he didn't start in his first two years) and 8-4 ATS in the playoffs.

The father of nine, Rivers had told the Colts he planned to take about a month to make a decision on retirement but needed less than two weeks. Rivers told ESPN that he wanted to announce his retirement Jan. 20, which is the Roman Catholic Church's feast day for St. Sebastian -- often referred to as the patron saint for athletes. 

"Every year, January 20th is a special and emotional day," Rivers said. "It is St. Sebastian's Feast day, the day I played in the AFC championship without an ACL, and now the day that after 17 seasons, I'm announcing my retirement from the National Football League. Thank you God for allowing me to live out my childhood dream of playing quarterback in the NFL."  

Coach Frank Reich had said he wanted Rivers back as his starter. Rivers' backup, Jacoby Brissett, is a free agent so the only quarterback on the Indianapolis roster is Jacob Eason, a 2020 fourth-round pick out of Washington.

While Colts fans are dreaming of trading for Deshaun Watson, there's simply no way that Houston will trade him to an AFC South rival – if the Texans trade Watson at all.

If Indy does trade for an established QB, the two hottest names are Philadelphia's Carson Wentz and Detroit's Matthew Stafford. Reich was the offensive coordinator with the Eagles when Wentz had his best season in 2017, but by firing Coach Doug Pederson the Eagles may have indicated they play to keep Wentz. If so, what do they do with Jalen Hurts? Wentz's four-year, $128 million contract extension kicks in next season and includes nearly $70 million guaranteed.

Detroit has a new GM and head coach and could be ready to kickstart a full rebuild by trading Stafford and taking a QB at No. 7 overall. Stafford is only due $9 million in base salary for 2021, so while he's five years older (33) than Wentz, Stafford would be much financially cheaper. The Colts have plenty of cap space available and the No. 21 overall pick in the first round of the 2021 draft.

The Jets' Sam Darnold is another trade possibility, although new head coach Robert Saleh and offensive coordinator Mike LaFleur have raved about Darnold's potential and may be inclined to keep him in New York. 

Indianapolis could draft its QB of the future at No. 21 overall, but it seems highly unlikely that the starting job would be handed to a rookie or Eason with a team ready to win now. Potential free-agent options include Jameis Winston, Ryan Fitzpatrick, Cam Newton and Andy Dalton.

Via SportsLine oddsmakers: Who will be the Colts' starting QB Week 1 of next season?

• Player acquired via trade -150
• Free agent (including re-signing Jacoby Brissett) +200
• 2021 draft pick +1000
• Jacob Eason +2000

The SportsLine Projection Model, which simulates every NFL game 10,000 times, is up almost $7,900 for $100 players on top-rated NFL picks since its inception five-plus years ago. It is a sizzling 24-14 on top-rated NFL picks this season, returning well over $800. The model also enters Championship Weekend in the 2021 NFL Playoffs on an incredible 120-78 run on top-rated NFL picks that dates back to the 2017 season.