One thing that has always been abundantly clear when talking to players, coaches and analysts throughout the NFL is that few are as special as Philip Rivers.

Here is a sampling of what some of the game's most revered names had to say about number 17 in 2015:

*Analyst and Former Head Coach Jon Gruden: *"Rivers is a maniacal quarterback.  His preparation is second to none.  He loves everything about the game. The preparation, game day, solving problems, being a leader; he is the cream of the crop in all areas."

Kansas City Chiefs Head Coach Andy Reid: "Philip Rivers is having an unbelievable year.  That guy is incredible…With Philip Rivers, if we went and played at the 7-11 parking lot, he's going to bring it.  We just know how that rolls."

*Analyst Mike Tirico: *"What Philip Rivers has done is incredible to me.  In my mind, Philip Rivers is an underappreciated quarterback nationally.  Game after game, he is a difference maker with his willingness and his talent."

Green Bay Packers Quarterback Aaron Rodgers:**"I've got a ton of respect for Philip.  He's been around a long time; he was drafted the year before I was.  He got a chance after one year on the bench and he's done it at a high level for a long time.  He has great anticipation, has nice, subtle movement in the pocket and he's a tough guy. You've got to respect Philip with the injuries that he's played with and he's done it for so many years in a row.  That's what consistency looks like; it's how Philip's done it.  It's impressive and he has the respect of his peers."

Denver Broncos Defensive Coordinator Wade Phillips: "Any quarterback that passes Joe Montana for number of touchdown passes is certainly one to be reckoned with, and he's still going strong. Philip Rivers is having a great year. He's been a great quarterback for a long time. He's obviously a guy we're concerned with. He can beat you throwing the ball. He had one game where he had 500 yards passing and no interceptions. That's incredible. I know Philip pretty well. I was there with him. We drafted him when I was there. He's a great person, but he's also a great competitor. (He's a) good trash talker, too….He's real nice when he trash talks. His competitiveness is similar to some of the great quarterbacks I've been around. Jim Kelly was that one—not trash talking, but just great competitors. Obviously, John Elway was too. They want to beat you in anything they do. He's one of those guys."

*Kansas City Chiefs Linebacker Tamba Hali: *"I believe Philip Rivers is one of the premiere passing quarterbacks in our league.  He makes plays….He's a competitor.  I got to know him a little bit at the Pro Bowl.  He plays with a lot of confidence.  There's no need to talk trash to Philip because he feeds off of that so we're not going to give him what he needs.  Basically, if we start talking trash, he may play better."

Analyst and Former Quarterback Trent Green:"It's nothing short of amazing what he's done.  The pace that he's on with attempts, completions and yards; it's amazing.  To also understand the freedoms that he has at the line of scrimmage to find the matchups and find what's working the best for the offense – I mean, why not use the weapon that's your team's best weapon?  So I'm amazed by the season that he's having.  Obviously they wish the record was better, but from a numbers perspective, he's putting up historic numbers."

Denver Broncos Quarterback Brock Osweiler:**"I've always been a huge Philip fan. He was someone I watched as a kid growing up in junior high and high school. I have a ton of respect for him…I see how hard he plays every Sunday. It's hard not to root for somebody like that."

*Chicago Bears Quarterback Jay Cutler: *"I have a tremendous amount of respect for him. He's been a staple in this league for a long time. He's put up huge numbers year in and year out, and this year is no different. No matter what their record is or what point in the game it is or what the score of the game is, you know he's going to put in the effort. He's fun to watch."

Minnesota Vikings Head Coach Mike Zimmer:**"He's really tough. I really love everything about him. I've had some big battles with him.  He's won some and we've won some. In my opinion he's one of the best quarterbacks of all-time just because of the way he wins, the way he competes and fights. I love the guy. It is always a big time challenge when you play him, you have to be on your A game in order to beat him….He always seems to get the ball in the right place versus the right coverage. He stands in there and gets the ball out at the right time. He stands in there versus pressure."

*Chicago Bears Head Coach John Fox: *"You've just got to mix it up.  You're not going to stop him; you just need to do your best to slow him down.  He's a tremendous competitor and we've been going at it for a while…I just know what a great competitor he is.  He's going to get his (plays).  He's going to hurt you in some cases and you just have to limit it the best you can."

*Green Bay Packers Head Coach Mike McCarthy: *"Philip Rivers is obviously an outstanding quarterback with his command at the line of scrimmage. At the line of scrimmage, he reminds me a lot of Rich Gannon. Just in total command. A great description of Rich is that he is an angry Philadelphia cab driver, just in command and his aggressiveness in attacking the defense. I admire that about him and the way he approaches the game. We're not going to sit there and know what he's (calling).  It's too vast.  But he does a good job getting the ball to his key people."

Pittsburgh Steelers Head Coach Mike Tomlin:"He's a great communicator.  Obviously he has complete command of the offense and more importantly than that, he understands defenses and defensive structure.  He can utilize that information to get them in premium-looking plays and he often does.  We just have a great deal of respect for that…Philip Rivers is Philip Rivers. The amount of autonomy that Philip has at the line of scrimmage is dangerous for defenses and something to be contended with."

*Kansas City Chiefs Defensive Coordinator Bob Sutton: *"Philip Rivers, to me, his greatest quality through this year, number one, playing at an extremely high level himself. Two, I don't think he even blinks an eye and worries about who's playing with him. He's attacking you full-fledged. (It's) no holds barred.  There's nothing being saved and he's done a great job. He's been smart with the ball.  He's a high-percentage passer…When you deal with him, you better be ready to play the entire game. It's just the way he is (because) he's ultracompetitive. And like I say, he doesn't blink, he's tough-minded, he'll sit in that pocket (and) he doesn't care. You have to come to work when you play a guy like him."