Getty Denver Broncos quarterback Teddy Bridgewater has reasons to be all smiles, November 10, as he celebrates his birthday -- with backup Drew Lock -- and has the full backing of the coaching staff.
Fresh off a two-game winning streak, the Denver Broncos (5-4) have a lot to celebrate this week, as they’re fully immersed in preparation for a very winnable game against the Philadelphia Eagles (3-6).
But for two players in particular, November 10 takes on added meaning.
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Go QBs, it’s Your Birthdays!
A very quirky fact was presented to Broncos Country and Broncos Twitter, as it was made known that Broncos’ starting quarterback Teddy Bridgewater and his backup, Drew Lock, both celebrate the same birthday.
Andrew Mason, of DNVR Sports, tweeted a shout out to the two Denver signal callers.
Two quarterbacks, one birthday.
Happy XXV to Drew Lock and XXIX to Teddy Bridgewater!
Even those who cover the Broncos daily were shocked to hear that the quarterbacks share a special bond. James Palmer of NFL Network, who’s also a Denver resident and very familiar with the inner workings of the Broncos was caught off guard.
I’m not going to take the time to look this up, but I’ll guess the #broncos are the only team in the NFL with both their QBs born on the same day. Happy Birthday Teddy Bridgewater and Drew Lock.
Teddy is Even Winning the Birthday Kudos
Bridgewater, who is four years older, seemingly has a lot more to celebrate in 2021, as he’s the one who wrestled the starting position away from the 2020-21 incumbent during a close and hotly-contested quarterback duel.
The veteran journeyman has been more than solid for the Broncos in 2021, and even during the team’s four-game winless streak in October, Bridgewater wasn’t the primary reason for the slide.
Dan Fellman, of Kroenke Sports and Entertainment, had some fun at the fact that Lock was even QB2 to Bridgewater on his own special day.
Drew Lock even has to take a back seat on his birthday. Tough break
Denver 9News’ Mike Klis reasoned that poor Lock probably couldn’t even properly celebrate, since he’s still isolating himself away from the Broncos’ headquarters, with the COVID-19 virus.
Klis also noted that Bridgewater is fully entrenched as the starter, considering the team had a reason to make a permanent switch to Lock after Bridgewater suffered a concussion in a Week 4 home loss to the Baltimore Ravens, where he was knocked out of the game on the Broncos’ final offensive play of the first half. He was also assaulted by the Las Vegas Raiders in an October 17 home loss, when he was hit 17 times — a beating so bad that he was admittedly banged up and literally limped into a Thursday night primetime matchup at the Cleveland Browns, four days later.
Head coach Vic Fangio even gave a public vote of confidence following the demoralizing October 21 loss to the Browns’ backup offensive backfield. Fangio, who was well aware of Bridgewater’s foot and quad injuries heading into the game, said he “did not” ever consider making the switch to Lock.
Bridgewater has earned the right to be a mainstay at QB1, according to Klis, as the veteran is currently the NFL’s 10th-ranked quarterback, with a 101.2 passer rating, and is third in completion percentage at 70.2%. The Broncos haven’t had a signal caller rank in the top 22 since Peyton Manning did so in 2014 — one season before the Hall of Famer retired. Klis pointed out that Lock ranked 32nd in passer rating and last (35th) in completion percentage.
Just in Time for the Eagles Game
The November 14 matchup between the Broncos and Eagles will a little more meaning considering the way the two franchises have been battling over players’ services.
Twice this season, the Eagles have procured the services of a Broncos’ rookie cornerback before Denver ever had a chance to promote him to the active 53-man roster. The first chance was when the Eagles signed 2021 undrafted rookie Mac McCain III off the Broncos’ practice squad before the season opener.
McCain, who has an interesting legacy and back story, was on the Eagles’ active roster until November 9, when he was waived. He was a valued commodity, according to Eagles’ head coach Nick Sirianni, who said during his November 10 conference call with the Denver media, that the team hoped to sign McCain back to its practice squad if he cleared waivers.
But as has been the case between these two teams during the 2021 season, the Broncos claimed McCain III off of waivers hours after Sirianni’s remarks. McCain III will now be on the Broncos’ 53-man roster and ready to play against his former team.