ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — With less than three weeks remaining until the Broncos' season opener against Giants, Head Coach Vic Fangio said he hasn't decided whether Drew Lock or Teddy Bridgewater will be the team's starting quarterback.
"Not yet," Fangio said Tuesday when asked if he'd settled on Lock or Bridgewater.
Fangio said the team has also not chosen which quarterback will start this Saturday against the Rams in the team's preseason finale.
As Week 1 inches closer, Fangio said the Broncos were waiting for the correct moment to decide and announce the decision.
"We just want to do it at the right time, meaning the right time obviously for the players involved, the team involved and for everybody," Fangio said. "… We've got 19 days."
Fangio said the team was not waiting to announce a starter to gain a competitive advantage. Instead, he just wants to continue to see the two players take reps.
"It's pretty damn close," Fangio said. "You guys have seen it. I've asked a few of you a few times, and neither one of you have come up with an answer. It is close. And I think it's close for a good reason. They both have played well. The good news of this competition is we've got two quarterbacks we feel we can go win with."
Fangio said while he didn't chart Tuesday's practice, Lock and Bridgewater had been scheduled to split first-team reps.
Fangio did admit that it may not be a requirement for both Lock and Bridgewater to play against the Rams.
"Not necessarily, but maybe," said Fangio when asked whether he needed that information to make a decision.
In Lock's last preseason action, in which he went 9-of-14 for 80 yards with the second-team offense, Fangio said Lock played well but was hurt by the offensive line play early in his reps.
"I think he was the victim of … some protection breakdowns there early, when he got sacked those couple times," Fangio said. "We had a little quarterback-center exchange issue, which caused him to get tripped up there on that one play where we fumbled it in the red zone and had to settle for a field goal. Thought he made some good throws. Thought he stepped up a good time, improvised on that one play to [Seth] Williams. Thought he played well overall."
Lock was sacked twice against Seattle and twice lost the ball, though he recovered both of the fumbles. He also made his share of solid plays, as he maneuvered to flip a pass to Williams that went for 33 yards. Lock led the Broncos to nine points in five drives.
Bridgewater, meanwhile, completed 9-of-11 passes for 105 yards and one touchdown as he led the Broncos' starters to two touchdowns in two drives.
"I think they know it's close," Fangio said. "They see the film of each other. And the good news is they're both pulling for each other and they both want each other to do good and make it a hard decision for us, and they've succeeded in that."
Soon enough, the Broncos will need to make a decision. That day, though, has not yet come.
