Denver made an example of
It was rough day on Sunday for the Denver Broncos, losing to the New Orleans Saints 31-3. Denver had just one completed pass attempt for a total of 13 yards, with not a single quarterback on their squad available to play.
Denver found themselves in the peculiar position after Drew Lock, Brett Rypien and Blake Bortles were removed from Saturday’s practice and given the direction to isolate after being designated as “high-risk” close contacts to quarterback Jeff Driskel, who tested positive for COVID-19 on Thursday.
The team was forced to start practice squad rookie wide receiver Kendall Hinton at quarterback, after the Broncos lost their bid to start offensive quality control coach Rob Calabrese at quarterback. The coach hasn’t played a competitive game since his time with the Central Florida Knights came to an end in 2012, but he was still the best option the Broncos had.
However, the league did not allow Calabrese to play on Sunday and the Broncos feel that they were made an example of after their quarterbacks were caught not following the league’s COVID-19 protocols.
“I feel like maybe [the game] could have been moved, but at the same time, maybe the league was making an example of us as far as maybe not doing the things we needed to do in that particular room, that quarterback room,” said Denver safety Kareem Jackson following the game, via ESPN. “Obviously, the guys didn’t follow their protocols, and for [the NFL] to see that, I guess they felt like they had to make an example, so at the end of [the] day, it is what it is.
“Obviously, it’s our guys’ fault for not wearing their masks, but at least maybe move the game to the next day or whenever so we’re given a fighting chance,” Jackson continued. “[It’s] obviously disappointing. I’m not sure why it wasn’t moved. I have no clue. As a competitor, [it is] definitely frustrating.”
With the loss on Sunday, Denver now sit at 4-7 and in third place in the AFC West. While they were humiliated against the Saints, the loss probably didn’t cause too much damage as the Broncos were highly unlikely to reach the postseason anyways. However, after a big win against the Miami Dolphins last weekend, Denver would have liked the opportunity to build some momentum going forward for the rest of the season.
The Broncos have an even bigger test ahead of them next week when they visit Kansas City to take on the Chiefs in the prime-time Sunday contest. It remains to be seen who will be available for them to start at quarterback, but the team is hoping they will be able to play at least one of their actual quarterbacks. If they are unable to, head coach Vic Fangio understands that the team has nobody to blame but themselves.
“I was disappointed on a couple levels: that our quarterbacks put us in this position, that our quarterbacks put the league in that position. We count on them to be the leaders of the team, the leaders of the offense, and those guys made a mistake, and that is disappointing,” Fangio said. “Obviously, I haven’t done a good enough job of selling the protocols to them when they’re on their own. There was a failing there, and that’s disappointing.”
