The Seattle Seahawks’ defense was too much to handle for the New England Patriots at Super Bowl LX, with Drake Maye struggling to make things happen at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, Calif., on Sunday.
The Pats’ inability to thwart Seattle’s defense had the internet showing renewed appreciation for the recently retired NFL quarterback Philip Rivers, who gave the Seahawks’ stop unit headaches.
44 YEAR OLD PHILIP RIVERS OFF THE COUCH PLAYED BETTER AGAINST THIS SEAHAWKS DEFENSE THAN DRAKE "DRAKE MAYE" MAYE 😭✌️✌️✌️ https://t.co/sMzcj4kZXI
— Guy | 🌇 32-19 | 🐏 (@OverloadedGFX) February 9, 2026
Philip Rivers had a better game against this defense than Drake Maye has had so far
— Logan (@SconnieColt) February 9, 2026
Philip Rivers played better coming off the couch and less than a week of preparation than Drake Maye is with 2 weeks of preparation 😭😭😭 pic.twitter.com/TudsVwQggV
— csb (@itsCSB__) February 9, 2026
Never forget that 44-year-old Philip Rivers got up off his couch and had the Super Bowl champions on the ropes after literally 3 days of practice pic.twitter.com/nowepSsXBe
— NFL Memes (@NFLMemes) February 9, 2026
Why the NFL is the best:
— Mike Kennedy (@MikeKennedyNFL) February 9, 2026
With under a minute remaining at home in a December game, the Seahawks trailed the Colts who were starting 44-year-old Philip Rivers at QB in his first game action in 5 years.
That Seahawks team just won the Super Bowl in dominant fashion. pic.twitter.com/6OVQ5wE1KN
With the Indianapolis Colts needing someone under center after Daniel Jones suffered a season-ending torn Achilles tendon, they decided to give the 44-year-old Rivers a shot.
Rivers, who had not played in the NFL since his first retirement in 2020, passed for 120 yards and a touchdown on an 18-of-27 pass completions in an 18-16 loss to the Seahawks at Lumen Field in Seattle, Wash., in Week 15.
His interception late in that contest doomed the Colts’ bid for an upset win, but he definitely performed better than most expected.
Credit should also be given to Indianapolis’ pass protection unit, which allowed just a sack to the Seahawks.
It was a different story for Maye’s offensive line.
Maye threw for 295 passing yards and 2 touchdowns in the Super Bowl, but he was intercepted twice and got sacked six times for a loss of 43 yards, as the Seahawks held New England scoreless in the first three quarters.
