Drew Lock on Lost RPO Fumble: 'When in Doubt, Give it to the Pros'

Live and learn.

The Denver Broncos were not bereft of opportunities in what was billed as a must-win game for the team's playoff aspirations. Trailing 10-15 and within striking distance of the Cincinnati Bengals' end zone, backup quarterback Drew Lock once again lost control and coughed the ball up.

In a season where the offensive objective has seemingly been to keep things close, Lock’s rush of blood on a botched run/pass option was enough to sink Denver's chances. Failure to execute in the key moments has haunted the Broncos all year long, so it was up to head coach Vic Fangio post-game to once again highlight the team's repeated deficiencies — all while trying not to throw his relief pitcher under the bus.

Fangio acknowledged the good things Lock did after initially relieving the injured Bridgewater while admitting head-on that the QB's decision was a "bad play." Considering the strength of the Broncos' running game, handing the ball off to a 'professional' ball-carrier might have been the more sensible option given the circumstances. 

Trying to get cute with the play-call, despite a backup deprived of first-team reps at the controls, backfired spectacularly, and Lock admitted afterward that he made the wrong read with the ball.

“You know [QBs coach Mike] Shula says it a couple of times in the meeting rooms, when in doubt, give it to professionals,” Lock said post-game. “I’m a professional thrower, not necessarily a professional runner. I should have handed that thing off to [RB] Javontae [Williams] looking back at it, but also if I run that thing into the end zone, make the defensive end miss, who knows what is being said right now.”

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Denver's hopes now hanging by a thread and the brutal reality is. the team needs to win out to have any kind of hope. Given the apparent severity of Teddy Bridgewater’s head injury, that far-fetched storyline will now rest in the hands of Lock, and he’s fully aware that he has to make better decisions in the heat of battle.

“When you’re losing a game, it’s hard not to feel as a quarterback that you need to go and do it yourself,” Lock said. “That’s kind of the personalities I think we all have. The longer that I’m in this, the more I realize the really, really good ones can balance both—being the ones that have the ball in their hands and taking care of business and put a team on their back, but also knowing when to kind of let the team carry him for a second.”

Unfortunately, post-game platitudes in the face of yet another face-palm moment that fumbled a must-have win away, Lock is falling short of what it'll ultimately take to get back in the good graces of Broncos Country. Waxing philosophical in the wake of abject disappointment, while the team’s fragile playoff hopes dwindle, likely isn't the best tact. 

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Follow Keith on Twitter @KeithC_NFL.

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