Twelve things about Broncos coach Vic Fangio’s decision to name quarterback Teddy Bridgewater as the starter for the Sept. 12 season opener at the New York Giants:
1. The moment Broncos general manager George Paton flipped a sixth-round pick to Carolina on April 28 for Bridgewater, the chances of Drew Lock starting in Week 1 diminished greatly. First, I thought it could be a pre-cursor to drafting Ohio State quarterback Justin Fields ninth overall, finding a taker for Lock and going into the season with Bridgewater as the place-holder for Fields. When that didn’t happen, I figured Bridgewater would win the job.
2. Reason A: Paton didn’t draft Lock two years ago in the second round, but he did swing the deal for Bridgewater. That had to be done with input from Fangio, offensive coordinator Pat Shurmur (who worked with Bridgewater in Minnesota) and quarterbacks coach Mike Shula.
3. Reason B: Bridgewater was acquired to make sure the Broncos got off to a better start. The schedule was released in early May and that only emboldened my opinion that Bridgewater would be the guy. The Giants ranked 31st in yards and points per game last year. The Jaguars (Week 2) will start rookie quarterback Trevor Lawrence. And the Jets (Week 3) will start rookie quarterback Zach Wilson. The Jaguars and Jets also have new head coaches and offensively play-callers. Fangio is justified in thinking his defense should control the first three opponents and only needs a quarterback who won’t be reckless with the football and make enough plays to win. Thatap Teddy.
4. Fangio is 0-for-September as the Broncos’ coach — 0-4 in 2019 and 0-3 last year. As much as he says he makes decisions in the long-term interest of the team, choosing Bridgewater was a short-term call … and thatap fine. The Broncos realize a good start to the season will create something that has been in short supply around these parts — momentum.
5. Was Bridgewater better than Lock in the two preseason games? Narrowly. Bridgewater’s passer rating was 141.0 compared to 135.2 for Lock. His completion percentage was 84.2% compared to 66.7% for Lock. They both threw two touchdowns and no interceptions. But itap what Fangio said after Saturday’s game in Seattle that served as a big tell.
6. Following the win over Seattle, Fangio praised how Bridgewater “manipulates the pocket,” is patient, and waits for routes to develop. Lock uses his athleticism to his benefit, but also sometimes to his detriment — turnovers and injuries. I think Fangio preferred the less-thrills-makes-safer-plays Bridgewater.
7. As for Lock, he’s gone from uncontested Week 1 starter last year to Week 1 backup this year, the first time he’s lost a quarterback competition. It has to be a kick in the gut for Lock, but he should be encouraged by how he played against Minnesota and Seattle and be prepared to start games this year.
8. I’ll go with Bridgewater starting 11 games and Lock six.
9. Was this competition ultimately a tie? Fangio consistently said “no separation,” or “even Steven,” or “pretty (dang) close,” in the past week. The tie didn’t go to the incumbent (Lock).
10. A smart move by Fangio to announce his decision Wednesday morning. Up until Tuesday, he handled this competition in mostly the right way; my only objection was him not letting Bridgewater or Lock take all of the first-team offensive line snaps in a single practice. When camp opened, Fangio said both players would start a preseason game, which left Monday or Tuesday as the first (and best) opportunity to make a decision. I thought he erred in not naming a starter on Tuesday, but he did less than 24 hours later.
11. I threw up a poll on Twitter after the announcement: Right call (Bridgewater) or wrong call (should have been Lock)? After an hour, it was 57.1% Lock and 42.9% Bridgewater.
12. Now that Bridgewater is the starter, Fangio and the Broncos can approach the Rams game Saturday much more conservatively. He said after the Seattle game that running back Melvin Gordon and receiver Courtland Sutton — out the first two preseason games — would play against the Rams. Outside linebacker Von Miller was also expected to play a few snaps. Maybe Fangio does that, but he won’t be forced to overplay his offensive starters in order to gain final bits of information for the quarterback competition.
