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According to 9NEWS Denver’s Mike Klis, the Denver Broncos are expected to sign quarterback Jeff Driskel to be the backup to starter Drew Lock.
Broncos are expected to sign Lions' Jeff Driscoll as their backup QB per source. He came up in Darius Slay-Chris Harris Jr. trade talks at deadline last year. Driscoll a great athlete, ran 4.56 -- fastest among QBs -- at Combine in 2016. #9sports
— Mike Klis (@MikeKlis) March 18, 2020
Jeff Driskel is a 6’4”, 235lb quarterback who was selected in the sixth-round of the 2016 NFL Draft by the San Francisco 49ers. He never made the 49ers roster but did latch on with the Cincinnati Bengals for two seasons before playing this past season with the Detroit Lions.
Through three NFL seasons and 8 total starts, Jeff Driskel has totaled 1,688 yards passing for 10 touchdowns and 6 interceptions. He completed 59.4% of his passes, had a passer rating of 79.6 and added 281 yards rushing and 3 rushing touchdowns.
This gives the Broncos a backup quarterback with some starting experience who can backup Drew Lock and step in if needed and produce. He is nothing special, but I think he is an upgrade over Brandon Allen who backed up Joe Flacco for most of the 2019 NFL season.
Speaking of Flacco, this signing means that the Broncos will release or trade Joe Flacco after acquiring the veteran quarterback just last offseason. This is confirmed by 9NEWS Denver’s Mike Klis who tweeted this information out after the Driskel signing was reported.
With addition of Driscoll, it all but guarantees Broncos will release/trade Joe Flacco, potentially by week's end. Elway showing discipline in this year's free-agent period. #9sports https://t.co/hMOJL8sUFb
— Mike Klis (@MikeKlis) March 18, 2020
Personally, I’m not in love with this signing, nor do I really have any hate for it either. More often than not, your backup quarterback is going to be an underwhelming option who may struggle if they need to start a lengthy amount of games.
Hopefully, Driskel isn’t needed outside of some preseason snaps and mop up duty because of a big lead.