Broncos quarterback Joe Flacco wasn’t awful in his eight games this season but he wasn’t very good, either. Flacco held the ball too long at times and showed little mobility, resulting in 26 sacks, an average of 3.25 sacks per game.
Flacco wasn’t solely to blame for the sacks — the offensive line has certainly struggled at times — but he could have avoided some of those sacks by being more willing to move around in the pocket and run when necessary.
Flacco has a neck injury and won’t play against the Browns on Sunday which means Brandon Allen will get his first NFL start. The 27-year-old quarterback might be able to give a spark to Denver’s offense with his mobility.
“That’s one thing about Brandon — he does have a good a feel in the pocket and he can go off schedule, so we’re excited about that element of this game,” offensive coordinator Rich Scanagrello said Thursday. “Obviously, it’s his first time starting and all that, you’ve just got to go out there and try to find a rhythm and the game is going to take you where is going to take you.”
Broncos running back Phillip Lindsay predicted Wednesday that Allen will “move around a lot” and “take shots and stuff” in his first start.
Sunday’s game will air on CBS at 2:25 p.m. MT (view the TV map here).
