The Denver Broncos have a quarterback dilemma on their hands, but Gary Kubiak wasn’t in the mood for solving it Sunday.
Backup quarterback Brock Osweiler made his first NFL start in place of the injured Peyton Manning and led Denver to a 17-15 win over the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field. Osweiler had a solid day, completing 20 of 27 passes for 250 yards and two touchdowns, but was it enough for Kubiak to endorse him as the starter for next Sunday’s showdown with the New England Patriots?
“I knew that was coming,” the Broncos coach told reporters when asked about Denver’s quarterback situation, via Pro Football Talk. “Here’s the deal: We got healthier here today. We’ve got some guys on this team that we’re trying to get healthy, so that’s important. And we won our eighth game. So we’re going to focus on winning today and enjoy winning and we’ll go back to work next week.”
Manning was benched during a Week 10 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs in which he completed just five passes while throwing four interceptions. It later was reported he had a torn plantar fascia in his right foot, and he didn’t even travel with the team to Chicago on Sunday.
Kubiak has insisted throughout the season that Manning is the Broncos’ starting quarterback when he’s healthy, and we’d imagine Manning has a pretty strong desire to be under center when his team battles Tom Brady and the New England Patriots on NBC’s “Sunday Night Football.”
That said, rumors have swirled that the 39-year-old’s ailment could keep him out multiple weeks, and Osweiler proved capable enough to get the job done in Week 11, albeit against a mediocre Bears team.
Thumbnail photo via Ron Chenoy/USA TODAY Sports Images
