The surreal scene played out Monday afternoon in a quiet Broncos locker room. Quarterback Brock Osweiler stood at his locker, discussing his first true test and legitimate opportunity against the Chicago Bears on Sunday. He will start his first game since leading Arizona State against Boise State on Dec. 22, 2011, in the Las Vegas Bowl.
Ten minutes later, a dejected Peyton Manning met the media, trying to paint resting as a positive development for a 39-year-old stricken with a plantar fascia tear in his left foot and ribs sore enough to require a magnetic resonance imaging exam Monday morning.
The Broncos have lost consecutive games, and their future Hall of Fame quarterback has lost his job to injury. At 7-2 with a three-game lead in the AFC West, the Broncos can argue they aren’t in crisis. But they have reached a crossroads which could define their season.
“In this league there’s always going to be some struggles,” Broncos coach Gary Kubiak said. “There is nothing smooth about an NFL season. Yeah, it’s been a rough couple of weeks for our football team. I can tell you this: everything we want to accomplish is still right there in front of us.”
This week, it will be done without Manning. He will not practice or suit up Sunday at Chicago. It represents a jarring, if not expected decision following the worst performance of his career in Sunday’s 29-13 home loss to the Kansas City Chiefs.
Manning showed enough in limited practice reps to start against Kansas City. He broke Brett Favre’s all-time passing yards record, then broke down. He completed one more pass to the Broncos (five) than he did the Chiefs (four). He finished with a 0.0 quarterback rating. He is worst in the league with 17 interceptions, tied for the second most through nine games in the past 20 years.
Kubiak said he made a mistake playing Manning, admitting, “not listening to my opinion and some things that were going on hurt us.” Kubiak admires Manning’s toughness, but removed the decision from the quarterback’s hands this week. He met with Manning on Monday morning, told him he needed to rest. A meeting with the quarterbacks followed where Osweiler learned of his assignment, which falls on his 25th birthday.
“The best gift would be to get us a victory,” Osweiler said. “That’s all that matters. It’s not about me.”
This decision involves multiple layers. It starts with Manning’s future. His status will be re-evaluated after the Bears game, but there’s no timetable for his recovery. Kubiak declined to address if the job is Osweiler’s to lose, keeping a narrow focus on this week. That it is even a question explains how poorly Manning’s season has gone while dealing with foot, rib and shoulder issues. Manning refused to use injuries as an excuse.
He was asked Monday if Father Time had caught up with him just two years after he threw an NFL single-season record 55 touchdowns en route to his fifth NFL MVP award.
“That’s a little bigger picture than what I am dealing with right now. I am kind of focused on the small picture of trying to get healthy and trying to deal with some of the things injury-wise,” Manning said. “I’m trying to knock those out. Hopefully, I can do that this week. I think we have a good treatment plan.”
As such, the focus shifts from Manning’s physical vulnerability to Osweiler’s ability to provide a spark. He impressed teammates with his performance in relief of Manning against the Chiefs, completing 14 of 24 passes for 146 yards, one touchdown and one interception. At 6-foot-8, 240 pounds, he provides mobility, lending to bootlegs and rollouts, and a stronger arm.
“Everything that we’ve been doing offensively, Brock’s been doing in practice. You saw Brock yesterday. He moved around, made some great plays, made some guys miss,” Kubiak said. “This is different. But I know he’ll do a great job in preparation.”
What Osweiler boasts in athleticism, he lacks in experience. He has never taken a first-quarter snap in his first four NFL seasons and has thrown two touchdown passes. Manning owns a 47-15 record as the Broncos’ starter, with 140 touchdown passes during that span.
“I am just the starter this week. Peyton is still our starter. He’s a leader of this team,” said Osweiler, as his cell phone flooded with text messages. “Yeah absolutely (it’s a test). But I am not going to put the weight of the world on it. It’s just a football game. That’s how I am going to treat it.”
The team’s season and Osweiler’s future could hinge on his play this week, and possibly longer. The Broncos are attempting to secure a top playoff seed, and largely control their destiny with home games remaining against undefeated New England and Cincinnati. Osweiler becomes a free agent at season’s end. How he plays could determine the team’s direction after Manning.
“Brock went in there and played good (against the Chiefs). He fought for us,” running back Ronnie Hillman said.
Kubiak made the pocket change Monday. Without Manning for now, the Broncos remain determined to change their fortunes on Sunday.
“I don’t think Brock is the type that has any confidence issues,” left guard Evan Mathis said. “It’s all about our assignments. We’re not going to sit here and play therapist to each other. We are going to sit here and talk about what we need to do on the field.”
Troy E. Renck: trenck@denverpost.com or @troyrenck
