Here's why QB Drew Lock Being a Gameday Backup Before Being Named the Starter Matters to Broncos
With nothing left to play for competitively, the Denver Broncos sit at 3-7. The only thing keeping fans from total despondency is the hope that they'll get to see QB Drew Lock on the field of play at some point in the near future.
Despite the Broncos losing on the road in Minnesota, and Brandon Allen failing to get the team over the hump in crunch time, the team brass don't appear to have any additional urgency to get Lock out onto the field. There are only six remaining games.
On Monday following the Vikings collapse, Fangio addressed the possibility of Lock being activated and named the backup this week vs. the Buffalo Bills by saying that it's "unlikely but possible". Lock began practicing again last week after spending the first 10 weeks of the season on injured reserve.
Fans don't want to see Lock as the backup, though. What fans want to see is the rookie second-round QB whom the team has branded publicly as the future of the franchise out on the field starting.
However, the Broncos aren't even ready to call him the backup. And we learned from Fangio on Tuesday why that even matters.
"Well, last week was his first week back at practice," Fangio told KOA's Logan and Lewis. "We're going to continue to get him his reps in practice. It's a fluid situation. We'll just see how he's doing. When we think he's ready to possibly be the backup, then that would be the next step."
In other words, the Broncos aren't going to go from Lock being inactive on IR to suddenly the starter, and skip the middle step. For whatever inexplicable reason, even though Lock standing on the sidelines last week in Minnesota, hearing the play-calls and hovering over the shoulder of Allen and QBs Coach T.C. McCartney offers the utility of him doing the exact same thing in shoulder pads as the backup, the Broncos want to cling to that as a qualifying step toward him starting.
The Broncos continue their inexplicable slow-roll of the Lock situation, sending the signal to fans and media alike that the team is being overprotective of their high-round draft pick. The only sliver of optimism is that Fangio called it a "fluid situation" which implies it could change at any time.
The Broncos will practice on Wednesday in preparation for the Buffalo Bills on Sunday. If Lock has a great day of practice, perhaps Fangio's tune will change on Thursday. Don't hold your breath, though.
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