Broncos Get Roasted After Surprise Joe Flacco Trade
When you have the chance to make a lateral move that costs $18.5 million, you can’t pass that up. Right, John Elway?
That’s the feeling from many on social media after the Hall of Fame quarterback and Broncos General Manager traded for Joe Flacco on Wednesday.
The Broncos incumbent is Case Keenum who is… a lot like Joe Flacco. Actually, Keenum has performed slightly better than Flacco in recent seasons and has a lower salary.
Over the last three seasons:
Joe Flacco (41 starts)
50 TDs, 34 INTs, 63.8 CMP%, 82.6 QB rate, 242 yards a game.Case Keenum (41 starts)
49 TDs, 33 INTs, 63.8 CMP%, 86 QB rate, 235.1 yards a game.— Josh Eberley ?? (@JoshEberley) February 13, 2019
Flacco and Keenum are the latest in a string of bad decisions at the quarterback position for the Broncos.
Before those two, Elway had the tandem of Trevor Siemian and Brock Osweiler start 35 games for the team from 2015 to 2017. Both players were backups on other teams in 2018 and are hoping they get signed as they enter free agency in 2019.
Let’s also not forget that the Broncos traded up in the 2016 draft to select Paxton Lynch in the first round. Lynch has started all of four games in his career and spent 2018 out of the NFL.
Flacco hasn’t even received his Broncos uniform yet, but many on social media are already roasting Elway and the Broncos for landing another below-average quarterback.
John Elway trying to solve his QB problem every year pic.twitter.com/kPvlg9Q8WB
— Matt Harmon (@MattHarmon_BYB) February 13, 2019
gotta respect john elway’s efforts to make sure he gets a bad qb with a name every year, ensuring he will go to his grave as the franchise’s best qb ever
— Harry Lyles Jr. (@harrylylesjr) February 13, 2019
If you’re a 6-7 QB, John Elway is in-love with you.
— Dov Kleiman (@NFL_DovKleiman) February 13, 2019
Not only did the Broncos think they got an “upgrade” with Flacco, but they also sent a fourth-round pick to the Ravens to complete the deal.
The Ravens were expected to release Flacco this offseason. So the Broncos must have thought dozens of other teams were going to be beating down Flacco’s door to sign him, which is unlikely.
According to Bill Barnwell of ESPN, Ravens GM Eric DeCosta likely managed to get the Broncos to negotiate against themselves for Flacco as no other team would have given up that kind of compensation for him.
Lamar Jackson is now the unquestioned starter in Baltimore after there were rumblings in the team’s postseason defeat that Flacco should have been inserted to get the offense going.
As for Keenum, he will be looking for a new home this offseason as no one carries around a backup quarterback with an $18 million salary.
But to top things off for Denver (or rather to bottom things out), the team will be stuck with $10 million of dead money for their 2019 salary cap once Keenum is released.
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