It was the right call, the way a Toyota Camry or a Nissan Maxima is the right call over a Porsche 911 with wonky brakes. The sensible kind. Brain over guts.
If the ultimate destination for the Broncos is the playoffs, quarterback Teddy Bridgewater is the ride that gives you the better chance at arriving in one piece.
If the goal is being “relevant in November and December,” where Broncos general manager George Paton set the bar a month ago, giving Bridgewater the starting nod at quarterback over Drew Lock was the right call.
For where this team is now — not where Broncos Country wants it to be, but the reality of the roster — it’s the right call.
For a coaching staff that needs to win now — starting with the softest September the NFL could plop in front of them — it’s the right call.
For the defensive vets, for the Pro Bowlers on the final years of their contracts — lookin’ at you, Von Miller and Kyle Fuller — it’s the right call.
Yes, peak Drew Lock might well leave Bridgewater eating his dust. With Teddy, the NFL’s version of the Camry, what you see is what you get.
But while No. 3 has polished off some of those rough edges — the back-foot throws, the brain cramps, the Nuke LaLoosh moments — that drove you bananas in 2020, the Lock of the present is still a push against the Teddy of today. And Broncos coach Vic Fangio clearly doesn’t have much interest in waiting his third-year quarterback out any longer.
Yes, Bridgewater is going to struggle to rally the Broncos from 10-point holes. But Lock might put you down 10 over two possessions.
If you’re still uneasy with Fangio’s decision, just pull up the tape from last Saturday’s game at Seattle. When the Seahawks brought pressure from the outside early on a 4th-and-5, with both edge rushers blowing past the Broncos’ starting tackles, Bridgewater sensed it, stepped up into a safe throwing lane, and finished the play.
In that same game, when Seattle brought heat up the middle on Lock and the backups in the second half, No. 3 turtled and took the sack. Different pressures, sure. Different lineups. But also different reactions. And different outcomes.
You trust Teddy’s eyes, Teddy’s cool and Teddy’s head. You salivate over Lock’s arm. If the Broncos could hire a mad scientist to somehow surgically combine the two, you might have a better David Carr.
Apart, they’re each one half of the ideal answer. But you can only open the game with one.
As for the Let’s-Trade-Lock crowd, throttle down a bit. For one, recent history says both quarterbacks will see the field at some point this season. For another, what kind of return do you think you’ll get for the guy who ranked No. 32 among NFL starters in passer rating (75.2) last fall?
There’s a defensive coordinator’s logic to all this, even if you still refuse to buy in: Start safe and roll with the guy who’s less likely to put you behind in the first place. And hey, if the Broncos are staring at a 17-0 deficit, try No. 3 as a relief pitcher.
We already know Bridgewater can work out of the bullpen, as he did in New Orleans, subbing the Saints to a 5-0 mark in 2019 while Drew Brees was on the mend. With Lock, it’s a wait-and-see. His next professional test.
And for the Lockheads, we get it. When you see Bridgewater, you don’t see Teddy Two-Gloves. You don’t see Steady Teddy.
You see Case Keenum. You see Joe Flacco. You see another second-hand, veteran retread who backed his way into the hottest seat in the state. Another anonymous, OK guy who can only do OK things in a division full of slingers.
The Chiefs have a future Hall-of-Famer (Patrick Mahomes). The Chargers may have just landed one of their own (Justin Herbert). The Raiders can turn to either a guy who’s been to three Pro Bowls (Carr) or the No. 2 overall pick in the 2015 draft (Marcus Mariota).
If everybody’s bringing their ‘A’ game to the party, the Broncos still have the fourth-best starting quarterback room in the division. But guess what? That would’ve been the case with Lock at QB1 and Teddy at QB2, too.
The special ones tend to pick it up pretty quick. For all the yapping about No. 3’s “upside,” all the wishing and squinting and projecting in the world won’t turn Lock into a young John Elway or a young Peyton Manning. No matter how hard you try.
Maybe more time, more trust for No. 3 could be the rope Lock needs to turn another corner. To step up from iffy to competent.
This is a talented, deep roster. This defense smells like the real deal. Pat Surtain II has the makings of a star. The Giants, Jags and Jets await. Uncle Vic is going for it now. As well he should.
Ideally, you’d aim higher. But if the end game is relevance, if the bar is competence, Bridgewater is already there.
The brave thing would’ve been to back Lock. To gamble that the quarterback who took a katana to the Vikings’ backups a fortnight ago will be that guy every week once the games count.
Fangio knew better. Deep down, head over heart, so did the rest of us.
"right" - Google News
August 26, 2021 at 06:34AM
https://ift.tt/3Baxhi0
Keeler: Teddy Bridgewater was right call for defense-first Broncos. That D needs to hold up its end now. And so does Vic Fangio. - The Denver Post
"right" - Google News
https://ift.tt/32Okh02
Bagikan Berita Ini
0 Response to "Keeler: Teddy Bridgewater was right call for defense-first Broncos. That D needs to hold up its end now. And so does Vic Fangio. - The Denver Post"
Post a Comment