After injuring his thumb in a preseason game, Broncos rookie quarterback Drew Lock was sidelined for nearly three months before finally returning to practice Tuesday. Lock is still on injured reserve and his return to practice trigged a 21-day window for Denver to make a decision about his season.
The Broncos have three weeks to decide if Lock will be activated to the 53-man roster or spend the rest of the season on reserve. Lock’s not worrying about that at the moment, he’s just happy to be back on the field.
“It had been a long time [since I last practiced],” Lock said Wednesday. “It was like a dream come true coming back out here. It’s like I’m starting my journey back in the NFL all over again. It feels good to be finally back out there with the guys.
“It’s different because you’re involved with the team when you’re not practicing, but it doesn’t feel the same when you’re not actually out there doing it with them. To finally be able to be out there and be around the guys and toss the ball around a little bit, it felt really good.”
It wouldn’t be surprising to see Denver keep Lock on reserve for the next two games (on the road against the Vikings and another road game against the Bills) before activating him to be Brandon Allen‘s backup. By season’s end, Lock will probably be starting.
The QB may still be a few weeks away from even being a backup, though.
“Any guy that is a competitor is going to want to play today,” Lock said. “I want to play badly, but again, I’ve said it before, I trust the coaches. I trust their plan for me.
“If their plan is three weeks, their plan is three weeks. If their plan is two, whatever — whatever their plan is, I’ll be here and ready for them.”
