Philip Rivers is a Hall of Fame quarterback, just not a first ballot Hall of Fame quarterback. Here’s why the former Charger quarterback should be in Canton:

Iron Man:

For the past fifteen years, you could count on three things: death, taxes and Rivers starting an NFL game at quarterback. According to ESPN, Rivers started in 252 consecutive games— including the 2007 AFC Championship which he practically played without an ACL.

Career Stats:

In the end, it’s all about the numbers and Rivers has quite an impressive resume. According to ESPN, Rivers ranks fifth in NFL history with 63,440 passing yards and 421 touchdown passes. Which four quarterbacks are ahead of Rivers? Some legends named Tom Brady, Drew Brees, Peyton Manning and Brett Favre. The former Charger also accumulated 134 total wins— second most for a quarterback without a Super Bowl ring, and eighth on the NFL all-time list per ESPN.

Character Clause:

Okay, maybe the Hall of Fame isn’t always just about the numbers. A player’s character also plays an influential role as well. Aside from his signature side-arm-slinging throwing style, Rivers practically trademarked ‘G-rated’ trash-talking. That’s right, even though Rivers did talk a lot of smack on the gridiron, not once did the man cuss.

As Kansas City Chiefs safety Tyrann Mathieu duly noted, “Rivers might be the funniest trash talker ever, he don’t mean no harm, lol.”

Counter-Arguments:

Sure, some critics may claim that Rivers isn’t worthy of the Hall of Fame because he never played in or much less won a Super Bowl. Others might argue that he had a subpar 2:1 touchdown to interception ratio. If that’s the case, well, Hall of Fame quarterbacks Dan Fouts and Dan Marino both never won a Super Bowl. Their touchdown to interception ratios? Fouts threw 254 touchdowns and 242 interceptions while Marino had a similar ratio to Rivers by tallying 420 touchdowns and 252 interceptions.

Bottom line, whether you think Rivers is a Hall of Fame quarterback or not, you have to respect the man for having the ability to start 252 consecutive games. His stats speak for themselves, but aside from the stats Rivers was respected as a man of faith and strong character while loved by teammates, coaches and players around the NFL for his banter and approachability.

As Minnesota Vikings quarterback Kirk Cousins tweeted about Rivers, “Philip, thanks for your example as a quarterback, a team leader, a dad, and a man of faith. So fun to watch.”