Trivia time: Who is the only quarterback the Denver Broncos have ever drafted who won a playoff game?<\/p>\n
Tim Tebow. Yep. Remember the Broncos selected Chris Hinton in 1983 and dealt him as part of a package to the then-Baltimore Colts for John Elway.<\/p>\n
So, since the Broncos never drafted quarterback Joe Flacco, there\u2019s a chance they could win a playoff game next season?<\/p>\n
Ah, no.<\/p>\n
We\u2019ve said it before and we say it again \u2014 how can the greatest quarterback in Broncos history not be able to find a quarterback as the franchise\u2019s general manager?<\/p>\n
What the heck are you doing, John?<\/p>\n
OK, let\u2019s try to give this a chance. The good news is that Case Keenum is done. The Broncos will try to trade him for a pair of cleats or, more likely, release him. In answer\u00a0to your next question, the Broncos will be on the hook for $10 million against the salary cap, which would be better than watching him play and paying him $18 million.<\/p>\n
Maybe, Flacco isn\u2019t the long-term solution at quarterback \u2014 that\u2019s good,\u00a0he\u2019s 34 \u2014 and Elway\u2019s planning to draft a quarterback with the Broncos\u2019 No. 10 pick in the first round of this spring\u2019s NFL Draft. The downside of this scenario is that Elway will be drafting a quarterback. How\u2019d Paxton Lynch work?<\/p>\n
Flacco isn\u2019t guaranteed any money. If the Broncos end up cutting him after training camp, they take no hit against the salary cap. The only problem here is that we\u2019re back to Keenum at $18 million or maybe some promising newly drafted quarterback whose career will be immediately incinerated by having being picked by Elway. One wonders if Dwayne Hoskins (Ohio State) and Drew Lock (Missouri) might be making some pact with the devil not be drafted by Denver.<\/p>\n
There just isn\u2019t a bright side to this. Joe Flacco is old, has a\u00a0lot of NFL miles on him and hasn\u2019t been able to lead his team to the playoffs since 2014.<\/p>\n
And let\u2019s remember, the Baltimore Ravens generally have had good defenses. Last season, the Ravens were No. 2 in points allowed in the NFL and No. 1 in yards-per-game, and Flacco couldn\u2019t muster enough offense to avoid getting benched in favor of rookie Lamar Jackson.<\/p>\n
How is Denver going to be any better for Flacco? The franchise has already tried the approach\u00a0of game-manager quarterback and let the defense win the game with Trevor Siemian, Lynch, Brock Osweiler and Keenum. How is this different? It isn\u2019t.<\/p>\n
Yeah, Keenum wasn\u2019t the answer. His numbers in 2017 in Minnesota were puffed up by playing behind a good team. Keenum also wasn\u2019t the answer because Denver\u2019s offensive line remains pitiful. Elway\u2019s had three years to address the offensive line and, well, nothing\u2019s happened.<\/p>\n
Garett Bolles? That\u2019s another first-round pick gone bad.<\/p>\n
What\u2019s more, center Max Paradis, who has been one of the few bright spots, is a free agent. How in the world is Flacco, not exactly a mobile quarterback, going to stay upright this season?<\/p>\n
And this brings us to the heart of the problem again \u2014 Elway. As great of a quarterback, as he was for the Broncos, he\u2019s just not a very good general manager. Let\u2019s be honest, he stumbled into Peyton Manning. There\u2019s a reason finding a quarterback via free agency doesn\u2019t work. Great quarterbacks don\u2019t get to free agency or have had major neck surgeries (Manning).<\/p>\n
You\u2019ve got to draft your franchise quarterback \u2014 and, perhaps do something about your offensive line, just saying \u2014 and Elway has failed. You\u2019ve got to draft well in general \u2014 and with the exception of 2011 and 2018 during his tenure \u2014 Elway hasn\u2019t drafted well.<\/p>\n
Most GMs whose teams have gone from a Super Bowl win to 9-7 to 5-11 to 6-10 are on the hot seat.<\/p>\n
Care to sit down, John?<\/p>\n